


S'/X^ 








Book_JiSl 

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CQEVRIGHT OEPOSm 



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To 



JAPAN 



i^ 






The Place and the People 



By G. WALDO BROWNE 

WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY 

THE HON. KOGORO TAKAHIRA 

Japanese Minister to the United States 



ILLUSTRATED WITH OVER THREE HUN- 
DRED COLOURED PLATES AND HALF-TONES 



15 3 3} ' .33,) 

3 3 ^ . . ; , , 3 , 



■/ 3 3 3 » , , 

* J > i»9 3*3 ) 




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DANA ESTES & COMPANY 

Publishers J- BOSTON, U.S.A. 



y 



LIBRARY of CONGRESS 


Two Copies Received 


APR 8 


1904 


Cooyrleht Entry 
CLASS ^ XXc. No. 


COPV 


^' 



Copyright, igoi 
By Dana Estes & Company 

Copyright, igo^ 
By Dana Estes & Company 



Colonial i^ress 

Electrotyped and Printed by C. H. Simonds & Co. 
Boston, Mass., U. S. A. 



JAPAN. 

BY 

KOGORO TAKAHIRA, 

Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of Japan to the United States. 



The rapid progress which the Japanese Empire has made within a comparatively 
brief period seems to be a source of surprise to foreign observers. They apparently 
believe that Japan has sprung almost at a single bound from mediaeval barbarism to 
modern civilisation. Only two score and ten years ago Europeans and Americans 
had nothing but the vaguest ideas concerning the Empire and its people. It is perhaps 
natural that they should now be astonished when they behold Japan in full enjoyment 
of the comity of nations, amply proving her capacity to administer constitutional 
government and justifying her title to all internati0nal rights and privileges. 

Yet no edifice of any permanence can be built upon a foundation of sand. The 
present advance of Japan, however marvellous it may appear at first sight, is nothing 
more than the normal development of the national life, facilitated by favourable en- 
vironment and accelerated by opportune circumstances. It seems unfortunate, however, 
that the exploits of arms which have marked her recent history should be apparently 
the principal cause of the world's discovery that her obscurity was undeserved ; because 
it may very easily happen that in the over-zealous estimation of such martial achieve- 
ments other and equally meritorious attributes of the empire's general progress will 
be either forgotten or ignored. 

The Japanese Empire had originally great advantages over other Asiatic States in 
several respects. Its foundation is peculiar and unique, and owes nothing to conquest 
or aggression. The Empire is established upon the concord of the governing and the 
governed : the boundless love and benevolent care of the Throne and the loyal deference 
and dignified obedience of the people. The lineal succession of one dynasty has 
continued unbroken for 2,560 years, from the coronation of the first Emperor down to 
the present sovereign, during which long period the country, though not quite free 
from occasional disturbances of its prosperity, has never been confronted by anything 
like revolution in its proper sense. Such a catastrophe as a Norman invasion or 
Napoleonic devastation has been unknown; nor has an English Commonwealth or 
French Directory ever been dreamed of. With what affection and vigilance the 
sovereigns have interested themselves in the welfare of their subjects is fully exem- 
plified in the conduct of Emperor Nintoku, who endured privation in a dilapidated 



JAPAN. 

palace for the space of three years in order to relieve his subjects of the burden of 
taxes ; graciously declaring that the poverty of the people should be his poverty, as the 
prosperity of the nation was his own. Such self-denial on the part of a monarch 
always accustomed to luxury and pomp could not fail to create in the hearts of the 
people profound veneration and intense devotion. The Crown being thus identified 
with the nation, loyalty is but the synonym for patriotism, and the people would 
readily sacrifice their earthly pleasures, even their very lives, for the safety of the 
Emperor and the glory of the Empire. It is this mutual attachment that has cherished 
the sentiments of honour, justice, and fidelity which permeate every aspiration of the 
Japanese for progress and amelioration in matters material and spiritual. Without 
this concord between the head and the masses which constitute a State, neither steady 
advance nor uniform development would be possible, as witness the history of other 
Oriental countries. 

While it is undoubtedly true that Confucian philosophy and Buddhism played an 
important part in moulding Japan's civilisation, it is also a fact that even before 
their introduction the peculiar relations between the governing and the governed 
already alluded to had led to the creation of an administrative system based upon 
ideas almost akin to the principles underlying enlightened modern governments. Even 
as early as the epoch when Europe was inundated by a barbarian deluge this system 
had taken definite form, the conduct of public affairs being partitioned among eight 
separate departments, the Imperial Household, General Administration, Civil and 
Military Affairs, Justice, Finance, Archives, and Ceremonies, all under the direct 
control of the Emperor. At that time, also, Emperor Tenchi, the Japanese Justinian, 
had instructed learned men to compile the code of laws which subsequently became 
the fundamental constitution of the realm and was known as the Taiho Statutes. It 
consisted of twelve volumes, including, among other things, regulations for official 
establishments, census, assessment of lands and taxes, education, marriage and 
succession, complaints and disputes, etc. And long before the Italian Eenaissance 
began to dawn, Japan's enlightenment had reached so high a level as the creation of 
an university at the Capital, where history, classics, law and mathematics were taught, 
as well as public schools in the various localities throughout the provinces. Even 
during the period of the feudal system, — which, though similar in form to that of 
Europe, was entirely different therefrom in that it was the consequence of the ascendency 
of military chieftains, but not the result of conquest by foreign enemies, as was often 
the case in the Occident, — the study of literature never failed to receive general 
encouragement. Learned men and clerkly priests were elevated by the comparatively 
rude military classes to the position of advisers, always monopolising all functions 
connected with books and documents; while poetry flourished uniformly in the 
Capital, undisturbed by the vicissitudes of the times. The present constitution of 
Japan, though apparently modelled upon constitutional forms adopted by western 
States, was in reality based to no small extent upon mental principles existing from 



JAPAN. 

time immemorial; and was granted by the free will of His Majesty the Emperor, who, 
in a solemn declaration made at the time of the Restoration thirty-three years ago, 
enunciated a programme of which the present governmental system and general prog- 
ress in other directions are the direct and logical results. 

Thus it will be seen that the Japanese stem, already old and long cultivated, has 
been sturdy enough to receive and nourish successfully the grafting of Occidental 
civilisation; and that all the achievements of the last fifty years, precipitate and 
extraordinary as they may seem, are nothing more than the gradual outcome of deeply 
implanted ideas and well directed designs. 

So favoured by Providence in its foundation as well as in its development, the 
mission of the Japanese Empire must be at once grave and glorious. The present is 
the age of peace, in aspiration at least, if not in practice. Electricity and steam have 
almost annihilated space, and the nations of the world have been brought into closest 
touch with each other. Under these circumstances nothing can be more conducive to 
the general welfare than the preservation of peace and common accord. This the 
government and the people of Japan fully realise. They recognise no nobler duty 
and no surer safeguard against the designs of selfish ambition than the unremitting 
effort to promote good will and cordial relations with all nations. This they believe 
is especially true as regards their immediate neighbours, to whom they are always ready 
to lend a helping hand along the path of progress they themselves are treading. And 
since none have a more vital interest in all that affects the welfare of the Orient than 
theirs, they do not apprehend that this sentiment will not be misunderstood, or that 
due weight will not be accorded to Japan's unique position and just aspirations. 



^^iJ&JlA^ 



M'^ 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER PAGE 

I. The Land of the Gods 7 

II. The Gateway of the Orient 15 

III. First Glimpses 22 

IV. The Imperial Roads 34 

V. The Modern Capital 47 

VI. Customs and Costumes . .......... 55 

VII. City and Country 63 ' 

VIII. Nikko and Its Temples 72 

IX. Natives of the Green Woods • . . . .83 

X. Lakes of the Highlands. .......... 96 

XL In the Wilds 103 

XIL The Eden of the North Ill 

XIII. Shadows of Departed Power 118 

XIV. The Wonders of Atami 127 

XV. The Rip Van Winkle of Japan . . 137 

XVI. Region of the Great Earthquake 151 

XVII. Along the Inland Sea 160 

XVIII. The Heart of Japan 170 

XIX. The Flower of Religion . . . - 180 

XX. Religious Festivals <^" 193 

XXL The Pine of the Lovers 203 

XXII. The Market of Mirth 213 

XXIII. The Star Lovers 222 

XXIV. Pastimes of a People . .233 

XXV. Indoor Recreations ^ 241 

XXVI. When the World Was New 252 

XXVIL The Vikings of the Far East 261 

XXVIII. Tlie Five Hundred Years' War 270 

XXIX. The Conqueror of a Continent 282 

XXX. Piping Times of the Regents 289 

XXXI. The Mongol Invasion 297 

XXXII. The Rise of the Shoguns 307 

XXXIII. Sons of the Sword 325 

XXXIV. The Revenge of the Ronins 335 

XXXV. The Soul of Japan 354 

XXXVI. New Japan 367 

XXXVIL Men of the Times . . . . ... ^ * ^ .,._... . 38a 

XXXVIII. War with China 395 

XXXIX. The Shrine of Mammon 406 

XL. The Power behind the Throne 417 

XLI. The Course of Empire 428 



FULL PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS. 



A Buddhist Temple. Coloured 

Map of Japan, Korea, etc. ..... 

Fujiyama from Maeda Village, Tokaido . 

Peony Garden, Kanazawa ...... 

The Beautiful Iris 

Bluff Garden, Yokohai 

Chrysanthemums . . . . 

Walking Costume. Coloured ..... 

Tea-house Garden, Oji, Tokio 

A Typical Japanese Lady 

Planting Rice ... ^ ... . 

Kirifuri Cascade, Nikko 

Three Little Maids. Coloured 

Chiusenji Lake, Nikko ...... 

Imaichi Road, Nikko 

Sacred Bridge, Nikko 

Tamadare Waterfall, at Yuraoto .... 
Reading a Letter ....... 

Kumamoto Castle 

Kamakura ......... 

Japanese Postman. Coloured ... 

Lilies .......... 

Fujiyama from Orniya Village 

Snowballs ......... 

Fujiyama from ledzumi Village .... 

Cherry-tree, Maruyama, Kioto ..... 

Bridge at Arashiyama. Coloured .... 

Junks ......... 

Fujiyama, the Sacred Mountain of Japan. Coloured 

Plum Blossoms 

Kinkaku Temple, Kioto 

Jinrikishas. Coloured 

A Tea-house Girl 

Japanese Monkey Trainer 

Wrestlers. Coloured 

Narra Temple Gate and Stone Lanterns . 

Japanese Actors. Coloured 

Nagoya Castle 

Japanese Festive Decorations, Bentendori, Yokohama 



Frontispiece ^ 

Facing Page 6 - 

14 

22 

30 

38 

46 

54 

58 

62- 

66 

70^ 

78' 

86- 

90- 

94 

102 

llO'^ 

118 

126 

134^ 

138^ 

142 

150 

158 

166 

174 

178 

179 

.180 

186 

194 

202 

210 

222 

226 

234 

242 

250 



FULL PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS. 

The Toilet , „ Facing Page 258 

A Cottage Garden, Kamakuta. Coloured " 266 

Fujiyama from Orniya Village « 270 

Dancers in Shinto Temple at Nara " 274 

Public Bath « 282 

The Cherry Bank at Koganei " 290 

Cherry Park, Uyeno, Tokio « 298 

Coolies Celebrating a Holiday. Coloured " 302 

Wistaria Garden at Kameido, Tokio " 306 

Tokio Castle Wall and Moat Filled with Lotus Plants. Coloured . . « 314 

Cherry Blossoms " 322 

Kago Bearers " 330 

Ferry-boat, Doshigawa River, at Sagami « 338 

Whispering. Coloured « 346 

Tennoji Temple, Osaka " 350 

A Kota Player. Coloured « 354 

Garden Street, Shiba, Tokio "362 

Daibutsu Bronze Image at Kamakura " 370 

Chrysanthemums " 378 

Writing a Letter. Coloured " 386 

Karahashi Biwa Lake " 392 

The Morning Bath " 404 

Lotus « 406 

The Cherry Bank at Koganei " 410 

View, Uyeno ............ " 414 

Tea-pickers. Coloured " 418 

Nogeyama, Yokohama « 426 

Entrance to Uyeno Park, Tokio « 434 



TEXT ILLUSTRATIONS. 



Greeting ..... 

Scenery among the Pine Islands . 
Fujiyama ..... 

A Farmer 

Yokohama Harbour 

A Junk ...... 

Street on Water-front, Yokohama . 
Lotus Lake, Myeno 
Double Bridge in Imperial Garden 
Jinrikishas ..... 

Street Scene, Yokohama 

Box Shop 

Suburban Tea-houses 

A Vegetable Dealer 

Lake Vista in Gentleman's Garden 

A Masseur 

Gentleman's Suburban Villa, Bancho 

The Gateway 

In an Old Garden of Tokyo . 
Wistaria Bush .... 
The " Garden of the Lake," Kyoto 
A Trimmed Japanese Pine-tree 
Rockery and Cascade, Fukiage Garden 
Examples of Quaint Architecture . 
Stone Lantern Marking Approach to 

Shrine 
Cherry Bank, Tokyo 
Water Mill, Colenba 
Chrysanthemum Seller . 
Ladies' Costumes . 
The Combat with Swords 
A Hair-dresser 
Macaroni and Tea 
Ladies at Dinner . 
Scene in Nikko 
Planting Rice 
Vegetable Seller 
Evergreens and Water-weeds 
Autumn Foliage at Taki-No-Kwawa 
Stable, Nikko .... 



PAGE 






7 


Yashamon Gate, Nikko 


. 


8 


Monkey Carved Stable, Nikko 


9 


Temple at Nikko . 


. 


. 12 


Sacred Post at Nikko 


. • • 


. 13 


Kan ay a Hotel at Nikko 


. 


. 15 


A Buddhist Shrine 


• . 


. 17 


View of Matsushima 


. 


. 18 


Tame Deer, Nara . 




. 20 


A Public Pleasure Resor 


t, Kanazawa 


. 23 


A Cobbler . 


. 


. 25 


A " Tea-house Woman ' 


in Jinrikisha . 


. 26 


Folding Clothes 


. 


. 28 


W^ashing 


. 


. 30 


Resting Kago 


. 


. 31 


Yumoto . 


. • . 


. 32 


Husking Rice 


. 


. 35 


Fujiyama 


. 


. 37 


Fujiya Hotel at Miyanos 


hita . 


. 38 


Torii, Shinto Temple Grounds 


. 40 


Country Girls 


. 


. 41 


School, Old Style . 


. 


. 44 


Refreshment Seller 


. 


. 45 


A Fisherman . 


. 


. 47 


Lantern Makers 


• • 




Feeding Silkworms 


• 


. 49 


Yo Mei Gate, Nikko . 


• 


. 50 


Main Street, Tokyo 


. 


. 52 


View on the Bluff, Yoko 


hama 


. 53 


Road to the Temple 




. 56 


A Rustic Temple Shrine 


. 


. 57 


In a Nobleman's Garden 


• . . 


. 59 


Iris Garden 


. 


. 60 


View at Atami 


. 


. 61 


In a Temple Court 


. 


. 63 


A Shinto Priest . 


. 


. 66 


Theatre at Osaka . 




. 67 


Fujikawa River Lookinj 


y toward Fuji- 


. 69 


yama 


• 


. 70 


Fujiyama 




. 73 


Suwa-Yama Mountain, B 


:oU . 



TEXT ILLUSTEATIONS. 





PAGE 


Shiraito Waterfall, Fujiyama 


. 144 


Mountain View from Monastery Gar. 




den, Nikko .... 


146 


Girls Warming Themselves . 


. 147 


Country Road .... 


. 148 


Japanese Physician 


. 149 


Girls Dancing .... 


. 152 


Threshing Rice .... 


. 154 


Carpenters 


. 155 


Japanese Tea Trader 


. 157 


Fishing with Cormorants 


. 158 


River View, ^^agasaki . 


. 161 


A Waterfall at Kob6 


. 163 


A Pleasure Boat .... 


. 164 


Japanese Bedchamber . 


. 166 


View of Miyajima .... 


. 167 


Bluff, Yokohama .... 


. 168 


Kyoto from Maruyama . 


. 171 


A Garden, Kyoto .... 


. 172 


View near Kyoto .... 


. 174 


Gion Temple, Kyoto 


176 


Kiyomizu at Kyoto 


. 178 


Temple of Shiba .... 


.^ 181 


Steps to the Sacred Gate 


. 182 


Typical View in a Monastery Garden 


. 184 


Shiranui Temple .... 


. 185 


Grove Surrounding a Shinto-Buddhist 




Shrine ..... 


. 187 


Dancing-girl, Tokyo 


189 


The Sacred Road .... 


. 190 


Shinto Priest 


. 191 


Village Festival .... 


. 193 


Kota and Samsin Players 


. 195 


A Palanquin ..... 


. 197 


Toilet 


199 


A Sacred Retreat .... 


200 


Great Stone Lantern, Yokohama . 


201 


Oirean Girl 


. 204 


A Wrestling Match 


206 


Bronze Horse ..... 


207 


Japanese Doctor .... 


209 


Types 


210 


Lake-shore and Foliage . 


211 


Lantern Seller .... 


214 


A Wine Cellar .... 


216 


Children's Festival 


217 


Toy Dealer 


219 


A Flower Girl .... 


220 


Catching Shell-fish 


223 


A Country Seat .... 


224 


A Beautiful Garden of Tokyo 


225 


Lantern Makers .... 


227 



Bracket Bridge, Fukagawa 

Miyanoshita River 

Wrestlers 

Acrobats 

Actor as an Old-time Warrior 

Japanese Kite 

A Toy Seller . 

Geisha .... 

A Flute Player 
^House Cleaning 

Tea-house Girl 

An Actor 

Actors .... 

A Broom Seller 

A Cooper 

A Garden Cascade . 

Iris Garden 

Garden at Kagoshima . 

An Inland Sea 

Colossal Picture Rocks, Ishiyama 

River Bank of Mukojima, Tokyo 

Gentleman's Villa, Bancho 

Yenoshima .... 

Hakone ..... 

The Cherry Bank . 

Hama Rikiu Garden, Lake View 

Umbrella Makers . 

Scenery in the Hill Garden, Honjo 

Screen Painting . . . , 

Artificial Cascade in a Landscape 
den .... 

Village Street .... 

View on Sumida River . 

Moor and Lake View, Fukiage Garden 

Sambutsudo, Nikko 
"^ Vegetable Shop 
^A Basket Seller 

Garden Hills with Rounded Bushes 

The Nunobiki Fall 

Curious Rock Formation at Haruna 

Lake Scene .... 

Stone Figures at Nikko 

Moving ..... 

The Silver Pavilion, Kyoto . 

Honmoku .... 

Public Garden, Mukojima 

Hodo Cascade, Nikko 

Hand-cart .... 

Bush-covered Cliffs, Kagoshima 

A Monastery Garden at Nikko 

Harvesting Rice 

The Golden Pavilion, Kyoto . 



PAGE 

09ft 



Gar- 



TEXT ILLUSTRATIONS. 



Spinning 

View of Miyanoshita Road . ; 

Lake and Pavilion, Kyoto 

A Tokyo Landscape Garden . 

Mnral Carvings, Nikko .... 

A Lotus Lake, Ginkakuji 

Hara-kiri 

Lake Scenery at Komagome . 
Japanese Kitchen ..... 

Spinning Silk 

Tea Garden, Fukagawa .... 

Jinrikisha ...... 

Street Scene, Osaka .... 

Lake View, Tokyo (Tsuyama Garden) . 

A Kago . 

View at Honmoku .... 

Bridge near Imperial Palace . 
Karamon Gate, Nikko .... 

Modern Houses 

Lotuses and Leaning-pine, Tokyo . 
Lake View in the Tsuyama Garden 
In a Gentleman's Garden, Fukagawa 
Steaming Tea Leaf .... 

Tea-house Gardens, Oji .... 
Small Tea-house Garden, Negishi , 
Cherry Bluff, Yokohama 
Cascade in a Nikko Landscape Garden . 

Silkworm Culture 

Lake and Island Scenery, Okayama 
Koraku En Garden, Okayama 
Country House, Yokohama . 
Garden Lake with Central Island . 
Jikwan Cascade, Nikko .... 
Artificial River Scenery in a Japanese 

Park 

Hakone ....... 

Tea Leaf Selecting .... 

Rock-bordered Lake, Niigata . 

An Artificial Rockery .... 

Scene on Kiso River . . 



AGE 




PAGE 


314 


A Hot Spring 


377 


315 


Nagasaki Harbour 


378 


317 


View of Myeno Park, Tokyo . 


381 


318 


View of Matsushima .... 


383 


320 


View of Yokohama Harbour . 


385 


321 


Kanasawa . .* . 


386 


323 


Hakone Lake ..... 


388 


325 


Feeding Silkworms .... 


389 


327 


Japanese Junk in Tadotsu Bay 


391 


328 


Hakone Waterfall 


392 


329 


Mito Park 


393 


331 


Mississippi Bay, Yokohama . 


394 


332 


Mukojima Cherry Bank, Tokyo 


398 


335 


A View in Miyajima .... 


400 


337 


Miyajima 


402 


338 


Tea-house, Tokyo ..... 


403 


340 


Country Bridge, Fujikawa River . 


404 


341 


Mississippi Bay, near Yokohama . 


407 


344 


Rock Haruna, Hokogatake 


408 


345 


Moat at Tokyo 


410 


347 


Picking Tea Near Kyoto 


411 


348 


Old Pine-tree in Villa Garden 


413 


350 


A Picturesque Lake View, Tokyo . 


414 


351 


Prayer 


415 


352 


Village Scene 


417 


354 


A Traveller's Resting-House . 


419 


356 


Castle of Osaka 


420 


358 


Conical Hillock Shaped to Represent 




359 


Fuji San 


422 


361 


An Archer ...... 


423 


363 


A Temple Entrance .... 


425 


364 


Dressing Fish . . . 


426 


365 


Stone Lanterns, Tokyo .... 


429 




Grounds Surrounding a Shinto Shrine . 


431 


368 


A Junk . 


432 


369 


Lantern and Water Basin 


433 


371 


A Common Type of City Tea-garden . 


435 


372 


In an Iris Garden 


436 


374 


Weaving Habutai Silk .... 


437 


376 








GREETING. 



THE FAR EAST 



JAPAN. 



CHAPTER I. 



THE LAND OF THE GODS. 

REACHING from belo^ the Tropic of Cancer on the south to within 
a few degrees of the Arctic Circle on the north, an irregular chain 
of islands rises out of the sea, off the eastern coast of Asia, with so 
much of physical beauty and softness of atmospheric influences as to be 
poetically styled the Land of the Gods. Nature, indeed, bestowed her 
rarest gifts in benign skies, smiling seas, and picturesque landscapes, so it 
is easy to accept the fancy of the sentimentalist and picture these Isles of 
Nippon as the crystal droppings of the Creator's spear, invested with life 
in its fairest phases by a generous God. 

In comparison with this fanciful belief, the verdict of the more practical 
observer becomes harsh and stern. To him, each lofty peak bears the 



8 



THE FAR EAST. 



symbol of that fiery force which lifted it from the depths of the Pacific 
Ocean, the mother of islands, and he feels in each throb of the lava-clad 
mountains evidence that their forge fires are not } et spent. So, if blessed 
on the one hand with the bounties of a munihcent giver, this Island 
Paradise has been a frequent sufferer from the sporadic beats of its own 
volcanic heart, and ever at the mercy of that power which raised it from 
the deep sea. These outbreaks, coming less frequently with the succeeding 




SCENERY AMONG THE PINE ISLANDS 



centuries, and never wide-spreading enough to be more than local calami- 
ties, are ascribed, by those who love to picture the brightest side, to the 
agency of a mighty fish lying asleep under the sea. Turning in his 
slumber, now and then, this monster sets the ocean in a rage, and the 
latter retahates by sending its waves mountain high upon the innocent 
land. 

Reason, as well as superstition, is shown for this belief, for each succeed- 
ing shock comes oceanward from the Izumi Promontory, about midway 



JAPAN. 9 

on the eastern coast of the main island. From this point a pendant chain 
of volcanic forces, connecting the islands of the Northern Pacific with 
those of the Indian (>cean, lies fathoms deep beneath the sea. These 
sunken craters are the forge fires that keep alive the vital energy which 
shakes the Isles of Nippon from the Kuriles on the north to the Ryukyus 
on the south. Very few active volcanoes are to be found on the islands, 
and these are not to be feared, for a volcano in action is an object of 
wonder rather than fear. It is only when it ceases to send forth its 
molten debris that it becomes a source of danger, and it remains so until 
it has found some new vent by which to discharge its accumulated masses. 

The truth of this commonly expressed belief was most vividly impressed 
upon the minds of the spectators who witnessed the unheralded outburst 
of the Bandaisan Mountain after a slumber of over a thousand years. Its 
fires had apparently burned out centuries ago, and its lava-scarred sides had 
become covered with forests, which had steadily crept upward until reach- 
ing the very brink of the crater. Following the example of Nature, man 
ventured nearer and nearer, until his hamlets were scattered far and high 
over its verdant slopes. Then, as if to show further proof of its peacefulness, 
and to attract man hither, a spring of water burst out from near its crest. 
This, charged with the sulphurous gases, was believed to possess great 
medicinal value, so that invalids began to flock to the place, flying to ills 
of which they never dreamed, in their anxiety to escape the pains of the 
flesh. Early on a summer morning in 1887, a convulsion suddenly shook 
the mighty form, swiftly followed by the explosion of a mine in its 
interior, and the whole northern shoulder was torn asunder. The noise, the 
violence, the confusion, and the result cannot be described. It was estimated 
that nearly a billion tons of earth and rocks and molten mass were thrown 
out like a ball from a mighty cannon. The loss to life and property was 
appalling. As it was with Bandaisan, after its long rest, so it has been 
with many others of lesser or greater extent ; so it is likely to be with 
many more until the end of this island-building. Fortunately, these vol- 
canic disturbances are less frequent and violent with the passage of time. 

With a stretch of territory touching all of the zones, the Isles of Nippon 
naturally possess a graduated climate, running from a temperature of 
perpetual summer to continual winter. In the largest islands, the central 
portion, and what might be aptly called the body of this colossal figure, 



10 



THE FAR EAST. 



the small isles forming its limbs, spring, summer, autumn, and winter in 
turn preA^ail, a rainy period following the second, while snow falls to a 
considerable depth in the latter. But the extremes of temperature are not 
as great as in New England, the greatest heat coming in August. The 
wet season is accompanied by high winds, and sometimes hurricanes rage. 
In the more southerly regions the monsoon sweeps sea and land, though 
less frequently, and with less fury than off the coast of China. The balmy 
south winds of the Pacific prevail generally, so bright sunny days are the 




FUJIYAMA. 



rule in the central islands. Here the seasons change with clockwork 
regularity, and the alternating breezes of morning and evening make a 
delightful climate. Except the two weeks of rain and the burdensome 
sultriness of the do-yo, or August dog-days, there is almost daily sunshine 
from April to November. Even in the month of December, though the 
nights are cold, the days are warm, and by the time of the March solstice 
the flower gardens begin to blossom like the rose, and the fruit-trees put 
on their decorations, while the inhabitants don their light and white 
summer garbs. 



JAPAN. 11 

Upon a closer examination, we find that Dai Nippon, as the natives of 
this island realm call it, occupies an important position in the configuration 
of the world's political powers. Lying in the form of a huge letter S 
along the coast of Asia, it makes a sort of outer guard for that continent, 
at four points, — Shumshu Island, off Kamchatka, on the north ; Hokkaido, 
off Saghalien, formerly belonging to this empire, on the central north ; the 
isles of the Strait of Corea on the central south ; and Formosa, off China, 
on the south, — within easy canoe trip of the mainland. Directly oast- 
ward the Pacific rolls between its shores and the continent of North 
America, its placidity unvexed by a point of land for over four thousand 
miles, while on the northern boundary the Aleutian Isles form the frozen 
links in the stupendous chain running to Alaska. 

The entire area of these numerous islands is, in round numbers, 150,000 
square miles, of which the numberless isles lying to the north and south, 
in about equal quantities, comprise less than ten thousand square miles. 
This reduces the number to the four largest islands, which, named in the 
order of their size, are Hondo, Hokkaido, Kyushu, and Shikoku, the group 
containing about the same area as our States of New York, Pennsylvania, 
Maine, and Maryland. Two-thirds of this surface consist of mountain 
land, that of the second in the group being almost entirely a mass of 
mountains. On the four islands there are as many as seventy-five 
summits over three thousand feet in height, — Fujiyama, the Peerless 
Mountain, reaching an altitude of thirteen thousand feet above the sea, 
which washes its feet. Hondo, on which this stands, has a solid backbone 
of mountain running its entire length, among its most noteworthy being 
Orenge-yama, 9,750 feet in height ; Yatsugardaka, over nine thousand 
feet in height; Nan-tai-san, in the Nikko range, a little over eight 
thousand feet ; Arikeyama, about five thousand feet. Only one of these, 
the first, shows at present any volcanic activity. It is evident that these 
four islands at one time were as one, and their shores now extend abruptly 
down into one of the deepest seas in the world, so that " Old Fuji " and 
his satellites, when considered as pillars, rising nearly perpendicular from 
the hard floor of the Inland Sea, form the grandest group among the 
many mountains of the Far East. 

The population of this island empire is about forty-two millions, nearly 
the same as that of the United States twenty-five years ago. About equal- 



12 



THE FAR EAST. 



in numbers to the population of Great Britain and Ireland at this time. 

A striking resemblance exists between the size and shape of the two 

archipelagoes situated on opposite coasts of the great eastern continent. 

There are about forty cities with a population of twenty-five thousand or 

over, Tokyo, the 
present capital, 
heading the list 
with nearly two 
million souls. 

It might as well 
be said here that 
the preceding de- 
scription of the size 
and situation of his 
beloved Dai Nippon 
would not be ac- 
cepted by the na- 
tive inhabitant as 
truthful. He has 
been taught to 
know his homeland 
as lying in the 
journey of the sun, 
which rises at one 
end and sets at the 
other. This is ex- 
plained, not at the 
expense of any op- 




A FAKxAlKi: 



tical illusion, but 
from the fact that the really inhabited portion of the islands, the w^ealth 
and historic body, lies between the thirtieth and fortieth parallels, leaving 
out entirely the second island in size, Hokkaido, until recently called Yezo, 
all of the long string of isles northward, and a corresponding line on 
the south. Even this is a liberal allowance of space, for we can draw the 
lines still closer without serious sacrifice, and so have only a territory two 
hundred miles in width, and a total length, running east and west, of six 



JAPAN. 



13 



hundred miles. We have now the extent of the island empire as the loyal 
sons see it, and it is this Dai Nippon, "Land of the Rising Sun," he is 
thinking of when he sees the crimson of dawn kiss its eastern shore, and 
the silver of sunset burnish the peaks of Kyushu on the west. 

It is within this limit the historian must look for his data, the scholar 
his classics, the mariner his harbours and ports, the divine teacher his 
sacred shrines and holy temples, the husbandman his fields and plantations, 
the fortune-seeker his mines ; in fact, here are the storehouses of the 
empire, the centres of population, the seats of political power, and, better 




YOKOHAMA HARBOUR. 



yet, the birthplaces of her best and strongest of the human family, her 
educators, her warriors, her priests. A glance at the map and a look at 
her table of population and statistics of industries show that, beginning on 
the east and following the ocean coast in nearly a westerly course, here are 
ten of the most prosperous and powerful cities of the empire, the majority 
situated at the head of as many bays. Tokyo, the modern capital, grown 
with amazing rapidity from an armed camp to a population, in round 
numbers, of two millions ; Yokohama, the New York of the Far East, 
with a population of 145,000 ; Odawara, ancient seat of government, with 
twenty-five thousand ; Hamamatsu, port of extensive general trade, twenty- 



14 THE FAR EAST. 

five thousand ; Nagoya, with silk, pottery, and large general trade, two 
hundred thousand ; Osaka, the Manchester of the Far East, 587,368 ; 
Kobe, foreign treaty port and extensive trade, 150,689 ; Okayama, outlet 
for great rice districts, 51,672 ; Hiroshima, army headquarters during 
Chinese war, ninety-eight thousand ; Shimonoseki, principal grain port of 
the South, thirty thousand. 

Japan, the name by which this empire is best known to the world at 
large, was derived from the Dutch Jipen, which was corrupted from the 
term bestowed long ago by China. Taking the term by which the Japa- 
nese designates the archipelago, Nippon, or Ni-hon, the first syllable means 
sun, and the last origin ; taken together, " sun-origin." In the ideographic 
signs forming the written and printed languages of the two countries, Ji 
means the same in the Chinese that JVi does in the Japanese, hence from 
Jihon the Dutch obtained Jipen, according to their pronunciation, and 
from that the transition to Japan was easy. In this connection it may be 
well to mention that the inhabitants of Japan never allude to themselves 
in that way, but speak of themselves as Nihon-jin, that is, " people of 
Nihon." This last name is often given by the map-makers to the largest 
island, but this applies to the entire group, and Hondo, which means 
literally " the true region," designates that. 




CHAPTER II. 



THE GATEWAY OF THE ORIENT. 



JAPAN is wonderfully favoured in the matter of harbours, there being 
over half a hundred in which large craft may find safe entrance. 
In one of these, on the western coast of the island of Tsushima, a 
navy might be secreted, and the water close to the shore is so deep that 
ships can be fastened to the trunks of huge trees growing to the water's 
very edge, their trenchant branches dipped into the placid tide. The 
most famous harbour, according to the world's reckoning, is that of 
Nagasaki, and this and the port of Yokohama are the two which are the 
destination of foreign steamers of travel. Another noted place is Shimoda, 
formerly a port of treaty ; and then there are Toba, Matoya, and Shimidzu, 
all on the Pacific coast. In the Inland Sea are the sheltered bays of 
Mitarai, Takamatsu, and the naval station of Kure ; in the far north are 
the ports of Mororan and Hakodate. On the western coast are found 
Sado, Iki, and the one first mentioned. These are only a few of those 
best known at the present time. Others will soon share with them in 
receiving the ships of commerce from all parts of the world. 



16 THE FAR EAST. 

With this general knowledge of the island empire, and having selected 
Yokohama as our objective point, in companionship with other tourists 
from every quarter of the globe, w^e employ the leisure of a long ocean 
voyage, where no sail is sighted for over four thousand miles, which, 
though made between the 49th and 35th parallels, is not broken of its 
monotony by a single iceberg, in watching the dim outlines of the shadowy 
shores of the chain of inhospitable isles on the north, or listening with 
romantic fervour for the howl of the poet's wolf of Unalaska ! 

If we are somewhat rudely disturbed in this last harmless amusement 
by the declaration that the nearest approach to a wolf ever seen on the 
islands is the blue fox, raised by the inhabitants for its pelt, and that 
the real brute and its " prolonged howl " exist only in " poetical license," the 
loss is not long remembered, nor is any ill-will laid up against the poet. 
The gladdening sight of the sacred island of a sunnier clime, Kinkwazan, 
in the glistening Bay of Sendai, brings us in good-natured kinship with 
all the world. We should not be human did we fail to go into raptures 
over the gold-tinted waters, the pearly sands of the seashore, the little 
lighthouse at the point of land, its flying flag, the hills in the background 
decked out in their most becoming suit of eastern pines ; above these the 
" mountain of the golden flower," and over all the matchless sky of an 
afternoon in the Far East. We have seen Japan ! 

This picturesque spot, which seems designed on purpose to captivate 
the approaching seafarer, is preeminently the sailor's haven. Here, under 
the old regime of spiritual rule on earth, lived the sea deity whose duty it 
was to give the waters of the golden shores those rare hues of pink and 
bronze, green and purple, the ultramarine and iridescent tints found 
nowhere else by the mariner. Here, before its tiny shrines, he returns 
thanks to the God of the Sea for all the blessings he has bestowed upon 
him, and prays for a continuance of his divine favours. Amid these sacred 
groves the deer roams at will, for this is hallowed ground, where the hand 
of man is lifted against no living creature, though in days not yet grown 
gray with the passing years, no woman was allowed to enter here lest her 
presence desecrate the holy retreat. Happily this has changed, and woman 
has risen, if not to the glory of her Western sister, to a respectable position 
in Japan. 

We leave Sendai bathed in the soft light-robes of the setting sun, and 



JAPAN. 



17 



the following morning get a second glimpse of the Island Paradise we 
shall never forget. Again it would seem as if there had been some special 
arrangement or understanding between the sun and the island that we 
should see the latter under the most favourable condition possible. Later 
on we find it is the ruling passion in Japan to make the most of everything, 
both on the part of man and nature. 

As we glide over the placid sea, reflecting the gorgeous hues of the rising 
sun like a vast sheet of brilliant foil, a delicate gray cloud in the hazy 




STREET ON WATER-FRONT, YOKOHAMA. 



distance rapidly assumes the shape and substance of a pink and white 
pillar rising high into the transparent sky from out of the darkness below. 
" Old Fuji, the Peerless ! " some one exclaims, and instantly all begin to 
watch and admire the mingling tints of early sunrise blending in the pearl 
of the snowy crest and the deep green of its pine-clad sides. A queenly 
sovereign looks this majestic mountain, fully deserving all the homage 
paid her in this land of the chrysanthemum and cherry blossom, the 
country where the lordly stork is the feathered king of day, and the 
dusky raven, of night, which the foreigner is prone to describe with unreal 
admiration or real misunderstanding. 



18 



THE FAR EAST. 



Fujiyama's spell is soon broken by the sight of the picturesque shore of 
Yedo, when the approaching spectators are kept busy watching the shifting 
scenes of sea and land, — the large, square white sails dotting here and 
there the one, the deep-green hills marking the other ; the clumsy-looking 
junks of the Japanese, manned by crews of undersized sailors, dressed in 

blue and white 
robes, either flap- 
ping in the air or 
tucked up under 
the waistband; 
overhead a sky of 
Oriental purity. 

Now on our right 
are the broken 
provinces of Awa 
and Kazusa,the two 
forming a penin- 
sula, made so by 
the Gulf of Tokyo, 
which thrusts its 
flattened head well 
into the valley be- 
tween the moun- 
tains on either side. 
On our left the 
province of Saga 
pushes a blunt end 
into the sea of Sa- 
gani, and in plain sight is the village of Uraga, dear to every American heart 
as the town opposite which Commodore Perry anchored his squadron of 
steamers on the 7th of July, 1853, and boldly demanded an interview with 
the ruling power of Japan. The historic spot now bears the name he 
fittingly gave it. Reception Bay. Just above is an island bearing his 
name, while beyond is another isle designated as Webster Island. Nearly 
opposite is a spot of more melancholy interest to the incoming American. 
This is the burial water of the war-steamer Oneida, which was run down 




LOTUS LAKE. MYENO. 



JAPAN. 19 

and sunk by the British mail steamer Bombay on January 23, 1870. The 
sad incident proved how ungrateful and forgetful of its dead one great 
nation can be, while showing the disregard of the other in not offering 
any reparation ; but if those most concerned in the welfare of the unfor- 
tunate victims were careless of them, Japan has shown herself more 
thoughtful and sympathetic. Within a few years a party of Japanese 
gentlemen have bought the wreck, rescued the bones of the poor sailors 
who went down with her, and, taking these ashore, buried them beside 
the remains of their comrades who had been recovered soon after the 
disaster. Not content with doing this, the humane body made prepara- 
tions for a magnificent requiem, called Segaki^ or Feast for Hungry Spirits, 
which was performed in a Buddhist church, all foreigners in the city 
being invited to witness the ceremonies. Our own Admiral Belknap, with 
his officers and men, was present. In his generosity he offered to share 
the expense, only to be met with a courteous, but firm refusal on the part 
of the philanthropists, who thus remembered the long-neglected strangers 
who had found untimely graves by their shore. 

Ten miles farther down the bay is a spot of historic interest to English- 
men, the delightful resort of Yokosuka. Here is the grave of Will Adams, 
the first Englishman to visit Japan. He went there as pilot of a Dutch 
trading vessel in 1610, and was detained on the island by the Japanese on 
account of his skill in shipbuilding and his knowledge of mathematics. 
He gained the friendship of the shogun, but was never allowed to return 
to his native land. Finally he married a Japanese wife, and lived with 
her until he died, twenty years later. His grave is now pointed out on a 
hilltop, as a spot of interest, and, from its " sightly " situation, one of the 
finest views in the country is to be obtained. 

We are again reminded of the frequency of American names in this 
faraway place by having our attention called to the little bay of Missis- 
sippi and Treaty Point, where Commodore Perry won his triumph by 
establishing international relations with the ruling powers. We are now 
within five miles of our destination, and the waters are fairly filled with 
small boats, the rowers standing upright and sculling, while in the distance 
are to be seen the war-ships of many nations, presenting a somewhat 
forbidding feature to what is otherwise a picture of pleasure. But the 
monsters of destruction appear unconcerned at our coming, and we give 



20 



THE FAR EAST. 



them only a passing glance, while we gaze upon our surroundings in a 
bewildered way. 

The first thing we notice about these boatmen swarming around us is 
their scantiness of clothing, and then their diminutive stature. The first 
is amply compensated for by the well-rounded limbs, on which the muscles 
stand out sharply defined, and there is promise of great strength and 
endurance in the small frames. The majority of them are young men, 




DOUBLE BRIDGE IX IMPERIAL GARDEN. 



and as they sweep their boats toward us, bending and rising with each 
movement, their band-like garments worn about the loins flutter in the 
breeze, like so many banners. 

But no one feature of the scene holds our attention for a great length 
of time, so we find our gaze wandering far and near over the ever shifting 
panorama. It all seems so strange to us, so novel, so unreal because 
unusual, that we quite lose our self-possession, and fall into ecstasies over 
the rare sights. The greatest charm, after all, is the remarkable brightness 
and beauty of the light and atmosphere. These, blending in a happy 



JAPAN. 21 

combination that fascinates and allures us on, are alone sufficient proof 
that we have entered a new realm of existence. Forgotten in a moment 
the two weeks of imprisonment on the palace of the deep, forgotten the 
many little unpleasant incidents of our long voyage, in the joy of this 
beautiful awakening. And while we gaze, and admire, and wonder, the 
Empress of the Pacific steams alongside of the hatoha, or landing-place, 
when we realise that we have passed the gateway of the Orient, that we 
are in front of what was forty years ago a small fishing hamlet, but which 
is to-day the bustling, cosmopolitan city of 145,000 inhabitants, Yokohama, 
the New York of Japan. 



CHAPTER III. 

FIRST GLIMPSES. 

THOSE troublesome factors of foreign travel, customs officers, arrest 
our attention in the midst of our sight-seeing, but we get rid of 
them here more easily than anywhere else. Duties are low, the 
government not being allowed to go above ^Ye per cent., and its repre- 
sentatives courteous and considerate, so that we are soon free and wander- 
ing at our will. As we pass on, however, we hear the angry words of 
an opium smuggler denouncing what he deems an unjust discrimination 
against his nefarious business. 

We are quickly reminded of the hackmen at home by the rush made by 
a score, more or less, of coolies sweeping down upon us with their odd- 
looking two-wheeled vehicles for transporting people about, the " Pull-man 
car of the Far East," as some one facetiously named it. This simple 
carriage, drawn by its human horse, is another reminder of America, its 
inventor having been a missionary from this country, who was with 
Commodore Perry on his eventful voyage. This is the most popular, and 
may be said to be the usual mode of conveyance in Japan. 

The jinrikisha, or kuriima, as the Japanese prefer to call it, is, as has 
been said, a two-wheeled affair, with shafts, and a cushioned seat, with a 
receptacle underneath to hold parcels belonging to the traveller. The 
body is painted black, and is usually without ornaments. In case of rain, 
there is a hood which can be put up, and, in event of a hot sun, this 
serves as a means of protection quite as desirable. The rider is also 
sheltered from getting wet by an oil-paper lap-robe. The sensation of 
being jogged along by a human horse in one of these singular vehicles is 
likely to be remembered. 

Next to his kuruma, the " rickshaw man," as he has been named by 
Americans, is an object of interest. He is usually a spare person, with 
muscles well developed, clothed in short blue cotton tights, and overshirt 
of the same material, with wide-flowing sleeves, and open at the neck. A 

22 



JAPAN. 



23 



strip of cotton cloth is worn about the forehead, and, when it is very hot, 
he covers his head with a wide-rimmed straw hat of prodigious size and 
shaped like a huge mushroom. Sandals made of straw, with a loop for 
the great toe, protect his feet from the hard, smooth roads. He trots 
along at an easy gait of five miles an hour. If the person he is drawing 
is uncommonly heavy, or the way hilly., a second coolie joins him either 
in pulling or pushing, which amounts to the same thing, and the passenger 
is called upon for an extra sum of four cents. At night-time the rickshaw 




JINRIKISHAS. 



man carries a lantern to lighten his path, and to see one of them coming 
in the distance is to imagine one sees a firefly bobbing along the road. 
As human labour is cheaper than that of the horse, the latter is seldom 
utilised in the matter of conveyance, and not to any great extent in the 
agricultural pursuits. Thus the jinrikisha and the rickshaw man are in 
great demand. He can be hired by the day for about forty cents, or 
seventy-five yens, as he reckons it. He will cover his twenty-five or thirty 
miles between suns, with a speed and endurance that is surprising to the 
stranger. There are nearly three hundred thousand jinrikishas now used 
in Japan, though the vehicle has been in existence only a third of a 



24 THE FAR EAST. 

century. China has also adopted it as a common means of conveyance, 
while it has been introduced successfully into India. 

A large percentage of the business of Yokohama is carried on by means 
of canals, which intersect the city in almost every direction, and the 
carrying trade is done on sampans, boats built for that especial purpose. 
Passing along one of the streets, the visitor is struck with the number of 
trades and crafts which are plied here, — the coopers, the basket makers, 
the makers of dolls, idols, clogs, wooden pillows, straw hats, rain-coats, 
sandals, fans, toys of all kinds, rockets, and lanterns, the weavers of 
towels, and the followers of other trades too numerous to mention, and 
many of which we could not name if we tried. Then there are the traders 
in all classes of goods, and the venders of articles that would be hard to 
classify. 

The cosmopolitan character of people and objects is apparent to the 
newest comer. Here are to be seen the representatives of many races of 
men, — the Chinese in his odd, loose-fitting costume, the Corean in his 
bright, attractive dress, the Greek priest of Russia in his black cassock, 
the nun of Southern Europe in her dark robes, the Jew in his threadbare 
suit of black, the British soldier in his red coat, the soldier of France in 
his coat of blue, the American tourist in his jaunty outing suit, and others 
more picturesque, if less important. Vying with the noise and confusion 
of the street, rings the medley of voices of many lands, while above all are 
heard the loud tongues of the push-cart men. Yokohama is not one of 
the most attractive cities of Japan, but it is a busy place, an easy stepping- 
stone from the bustle and excitement of our own business marts to the 
other cities of the Orient. We are especially reminded of homeland by 
the lawyers' signs, those of doctors and dentists, newspaper offices, and 
barber shops, where for a trifle one can have his hair cut in either English, 
French, or Japanese style. 

For purposes of local distinction, the city is divided into three parts or 
districts : " The Bluffs," a half-circle of hills where foreign residents live ; 
" The Settlement," or main portion of mixed inhabitants ; and " The 
Native " quarter, where the Japanese congregate. This last, of course, 
contains the great bulk of the people, though there are nearly ten thousand 
foreigners now in the city, made up principally of Chinese, English, 
American, German, French, Russian, Dutch, Danish, Italian, Belgian, 



JAPAN. 



25 



Hungarian, Spanish, Swedish, Norwegian, Swiss, Portuguese, with a sprin- 
kling of other nationalities. 

The streets are wide, and well paved with concrete or white stones, 
which seem nearly indestructible. The most common means of transpor- 
tation along these is the push-cart, made with two wheels that need no 
tires, a flat bottom, shafts and cross-bar in front, and a beam behind, 
propelled by four lusty fellows, one pair in front and the other at the rear. 



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ik^^^^^S 


^Kt Lr^n[^^SSli^ '^^H 


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STREET SCENE, YOKOHAMA. 



The amount of shouting they do and the load they will move are somewhat 
astonishing to the newcomer. 

The " Broadway " of this Eastern New York is Main Street, where fine 
stone-fronted stores with a liberal show of plate-glass windows are to be 
seen, prosperous banks, houses of commerce, hotels somewhat on the 
Occidental plan, restaurants,, and places of trade, where more display of 
goods is to be found than elsewhere in Japan. One of the finest streets is 
" The Bund," which runs along the water-front, and has a stone wall of 
solid masonry on that side, its entire length. 

The business men of Japan offer no dazzling display of their wares in 
shop fronts. This custom so foreign to our own sprang from the low 



26 



THE FAR EAST. 



estimate formerly placed upon trade as a means of earning a livelihood, 
and from the inherent disposition of the Japanese to avoid what seems to 
him vulgar show. The artist who portrays his skill in the details of a 
work of art in decoration and technique by the consummate adeptness by 
which he conceals rather than suggests his skill, by a design intended for 
that purpose, has the same principle at heart. It requires the eye and the 
knowledge of an artist to appreciate a work of Japanese art. One of the 
best illustrations of this idea carried out in trade is to be seen at Kyoto, 




BOX SHOP. 



the ancient capital, where one of the largest and richest stores is hidden 
behind an old, weather-stained building, that seems little morj than a 
lattice-work front sadly out of repair. Once this uninviting exterior is 
passed, the visitor is ushered into spacious quarters, where are to be 
found tastefully ornamented warerooms, elegant showrooms, charming 
gardens, and large fire-proof warehouses. Close beside this is to be found 
a place having yet more of the old style. The entrance to this wealthy 
establishment is indicated only by the bustle and activity going on, while 
inside there is an utter lack of businesslike methods, the salesrooms being 
nothing more than small back-chambers, with vistas of rockeries and 



JAPAN. 27 

shrubberies in the background. Tokyo, the modern capital, with less of 
tradition and more of boldness, has placed her Mammon in a greater con- 
spicuousness, and has changed to a greater degree the methods of her 
tradesmen ; but even here the seeker after trade does not parade his wares 
with any particular daring for public inspection, and the day is still 
distant when Japan shall so far forget her natural modesty as to display 
the temptation of the Occidental mart. 

An important place for the foreign visitor is the Benton Dori, or one of 
the money exchanges on Main Street, where for a trifle he can get his 
currency and bank-notes changed into the fractional coins he must of 
necessity have in this country. The Japanese denominations of money 
are based upon the decimal system, the yen^ at par, being equal to the 
American dollar. This yen is divided into one hundred sens, correspond- 
ing to the cents of America. These sens are divided into ten rins each, 
whose value is the same as our mill. For several years the paper yen 
has suffered a depreciation in value, so one of them is about equal to fifty 
cents in gold. This fact should be borne in mind in estimating values. 

Yokohama has little scenery to attract the newcomer. Its beauty 
spot is " The Bluff,' ' where are to be seen the fine residences of the 
wealthy foreigners who have taken up their homes in this city. Here, 
too, the diplomats from different countries have chosen to live rather than 
at the capital, Tokyo. The place is reached by a tortuous road, but no 
sooner are the heights gained than an extensive and beautiful panorama 
of country is unfolded to the admiring gaze. The avenues are all bordered 
with trees and flowering shrubs. Flower gardens stocked with native and 
foreign plants are managed with skilful care. One of these boasts of a 
hundred varieties of peonies, while another has a display of chrysanthe- 
mums unequalled elsewhere in the world until very recently. The houses 
are not above two stories in height, but are commodious and attractive 
without and comfortable within. They command a fine view of the bay, 
with its sparkling waters and fleets of boats, junks, and steamers ; the 
plains, with their far-reaching fields of crops ; the rivers, forests, and 
mountains, crowned by that matchless gem, silver-tipped Fuji. 

Here is to be seen the oldest tea-house in Yokohama, named Fujita, in 
honour of the sacred mountain standing out in such bold relief against the 
clear sky. This lofty building is reached by a stairway of a hundred stone 



28 



THE FAR EAST.. 



steps, concerning the ascent of which the following story is told : Some 
years since, a circus rider, grown weary of the applause won in the ring, 
undertook a tour of the country, with the express purpose of riding down 
the stone steps of every shrine he should visit, hoping by this recklessness 
to gain the favour of the gods belonging to the same. In the course of his 
wanderings he came to Fujita, and accompanied by his daughter rode up 
the hundred steps. Then, as if to outdo himself, he rode down the stone 




SUBURBAN TEA-HOUSES. 



stairway standing upon his head on the back of his horse, holding between 
his uplifted feet a fan. If successful here, the story goes on to say that 
he soon after met his death by a farf from his horse. Whether his horse 
blundered, or the gods withdrew their favour, the narrator does not say. 

The post-office is on Main Street, from which mails to Europe leave 
every week, and to America once in ten days. Japan belongs to the 
Postal Union, a uniform rate for foreign .letters being five sen for a letter 
whose weight does not exceed fifteen grams. The rate for a letter of 



JAPAN. 29 

one-fourth ounce is two sen for any part of the empire. A telegraph office 
is near by, and a message can be sent to any part of Japan for a charge of 
about a cent a character. If sent in a foreign language, the expense is five 
sen a word. There are three cable routes to Europe, the cost being from 
two to three dollars a word to New York. 

The " native quarter " of Yokohama is an interesting locality to learn 
something of a race that we know only in our ignorance. We have been 
taught to expect everything done here in a manner entirely different from 
that we have known in the homeland. We build sky-scrapers for dwellings, 
while the Japanese never go above two stories ; we apply the power of 
nature and beast to our mills and vehicles, and, until we taught them some- 
thing of our art, they depended wholly on man-power ; our workmen use 
their tools with movements away from them, and theirs toward them ; we 
furnish our houses with great care and pride, while they keep theirs bare 
of furniture, and sleep upon the floor ; we sit upon chairs and eat from a 
table, while they sit on the floor, with their food placed beside them ; we 
sleep in the dark, but they keep lights burning from dusk to dawn ; we 
wear hats, while they go with heads uncovered ; we pass vehicles by turn- 
ing to the right, they to the left ; we kiss our friends, they never salute 
with the lips ; we shake hands, while they bow ; we write to our corre- 
spondents with pen and ink, in characters running from left to right, and 
across the page, while they indite their letters with brush and paint, run- 
ning from right to left, and up and down ; our young women consider their 
matrimonial market good at twenty-five, while theirs blacken their teeth 
at twenty-four, as an announcement that they have passed the marriage- 
able age ; we dress to display, while they endeavour to conceal the quality 
of the goods, and the outside of a dress worn by a Japanese lady of the 
better class is plain, though the inside is elaborately trimmed with silk, 
which is seen only when she puts the outer garment off and hangs it up. 

As a race, the Japanese get their growth at a younger age than the 
people of Caucasian descent, but they never attain the size of the latter, 
except in rare cases. The average height of the male with them is but a 
little over five feet, and the weight 125 pounds. The females are corre- 
spondingly smaller, averaging a height of four feet and eight inches, and a 
weight of one hundred pounds. The majority of the people, that is, the 
working class, are strong and robust, but many of the upper class are 



30 



THE FAR EAST. 



puny. In proportion to the body and limbs, the head is large. The coun- 
tenance is long and narrow, though a flat nose gives it an appearance of 
width. The forehead is low ; the mouth, as a rule, small and shapely, 
though sometimes abnormally large. The eye is dark, its lids showing an 
apparent obliqueness it does not really possess, from the fact that the skin 
of the forehead is not creased at the corners, as in the case of other races. 
The cheeks are broad and flat, meeting a narrow chin and contracting jaw. 
The skin is of a light yellowish hue, often not darker than that of the 




A VEGETABLE DEALER. 



races of Southern Europe. The growth of hair is not abundant, and this 
turns gray at an early age, though baldness is almost unknown. The lower 
limbs are short in proportion to the body, and without grace of movement; 
but the arms and neck are well formed, and the former possess a wonderful 
ease and grace of action. 

The home of the Japanese offers a pretty picture of family life, the 
pride and autocrat being the child under six. Immediately after that age, 
this little member is swiftly and mysteriously transformed into a youthful 
adult, with the cares and realisation of a home-maker, rather than the care- 
lessness of an infant. In the Japanese nursery there is no fault-finding. 




THE BPIAUTIFUL IKIS. 



JAPAN. 



31 



no hint of disgrace; the parent becomes the model which the child fol- 
lows, and, following, in its wanton glee, is always welcome, always 
loved, — spoiled, if loving does that, but ever coming out a bright, obedient 
youth or maid. If the latter, soon emerging into womanhood's noblest 
state, taught from infancy " to love, yield, help others, and forget self." 
Under such benign influences the young heart waxes pure and strong, 
ready to make any sacrifice, and brave enough to bear any cross. The 



Js:^^ 



.Saii*tlL£ 



m^^'- ■ -^^^^ 







'\ 


'^'•Z^^r±M^JlJL ^,f -v^jL '»^^!!li<rj|flii^B^i 



lakp: vista in gentleman s garden. 



saddest feature is the rapidity with which age comes on, and the Japanese 
maid declares she is old at twenty, and, four years later, must give up 
her ambition to get married, if she has not been fortunate enough to have 
secured this end in life before that time. 

Should there be no child in a family some time united, then it is doubt- 
less because the grim angel has visited this simple home, and now a 
sad-eyed mother moves about so as to keep her gaze away from the little 
players across the yard. Before a wooden tablet bearing the name given 



32 



THE FAR EAST. 



the baby at birth, and holding the httle garments he wore, she reverently 
places a tiny dish of rice, and fish, with daikon. She speaks of him now, 
when she speaks at all, by the new name that came to him as he passed 
over the heavenly bridge leading to spirit-land. 

A more pathetic picture than even this is the home presided over by an 
aged couple, who have lost their family treasures and are left alone in the 
world. They may be the relics of those who started out together in early 
life, hand in hand, and who have seen their loved ones removed, one by 




A MA>SELR. 



one ; or they may be those still more sad people who, having lost their all, 
have joined their pitiable fortunes in a home where the thief can find 
nothing to steal should he break in. A union of this kind is known by 
the distinctive term of " party for making tea." 

Especially fortunate are the men who have reached three score years and 
one, when it is expected they will lay aside the burdens of life, and pass 
their remaining days in peace and rest. Their children or grandchildren are 
expected to support them, new clothes are given them, their health is drank 
in the best of wine, and congratulations are heaped upon them from all. 

If for no other reason, one is pretty sure to remember his first evening 



JAPAN. 33 

in any Japan city from hearing the low, plaintive call of the blind 
shampooer nnder his window. If this is not heeded it will soon move on, 
gradually growing fainter and more melancholy, until it dies out in the 
distance. The sightless masseur, or shampooer, as he is known, belongs 
to a sort of national guild, as Japan makes special effort to protect her 
blind, who are very numerous. This is done by allowing them a monopoly 
of the profitable occupation of massage, which is done by a dexterous 
manipulation of the skin and muscles, and has a very beneficial effect. 
Few deny themselves this healthful indulgence, so the source of income to 
those who live by this means is considerable. The sightless shampooer, 
with his heavy oaken staff in hand, and the whistle by which he announces 
his coming at his lips, groping his way along the streets, is frequently 
seen and heard after nightfall. 



CHAPTER IV. 

THE IMPERIAL ROADS. 

JAPAN is in constant motion, from the volcanic forces underneath, but 
this movement is not observable under ordinary circumstances. In 
fact, four distinct sources of danger continually menace the safety 
of the Japanese, which they denominate, jishin, earthquakes, kaminari, 
thunderbolts, Jcwaji, fires, ovaji, fathers. 

It would be naturally expected, under this condition, that they would 
stand in perpetual fear of these secret enemies, the more to be dreaded 
because of their stealthy approach ; but in no land is peril treated more 
lightly, or sorrow more philosophically. They build their dwellings 
invariably of light wooden material, and never above one story. Light 
shutters are closed at night, and these so hung that, at the slightest 
warning of danger, the occupant will find the least hindrance to flight 
possible. This simplicity of style has not developed any particular archi- 
tectural skill, and a Japanese city is picturesque in its simplicity, being 
but a rambling collection of toy-like shanties. In ancient structures, 
however, they have shown greater adeptness, and have evolved a roof 
curve that is the admiration of the rest of the world. 

Second in the list of evils is the fire, and a vivid presentation of the 
loss and danger from this element is made when it said that Tokyo, the 
capital, is estimated to be laid in ashes every twenty-five years. This 
does not mean destroyed by the sweep of one conflagration, but that in a 
quarter of a century a number of dwellings and business houses, equal to 
the entire number of the city, have been obliterated. What is true of 
Tokyo in this respect applies to any other city. Yet the people smile 
at the thought of fear, laugh at the clangour of the fire-bell, and style the 
fire " the flower of the capital.'' 

By this it must not be understood that the Japanese fails to realise the 
loss to himself or his country, or that he puts on any false bravado. 
The earnings of a lifetime may have vanished in the smoke of a five- 

34 



JAPAN. 



35 



minute fire, leaving him penniless as well as homeless. Still, with his 
family domiciled close by the smoking ruins, he sets himself cheerfully 
to work to build anew. He lives under the inspiration that he has no 
right to thrust his sorrows or burdens on another. It is a part of 
the common lot to suffer thus, and this experience has held in check the 
increase of the wealth of the island empire. 

When we look to the origin of this second evil, we find that it is largely 




GENTLEMAN S SUBURBAN VILLA, BANCHO. 



due to the first ; is an indirect result, from the reason that the dwellings 
the first compels the people to build are poorly constructed to resist the 
ravages of the fire-fiend. With the introduction of modern appliances for 
fighting the flames, the loss from fire has been decreased somewhat, but 
with the majority of towns, and in the memory of the inhabitants, it has 
only been modified, not materially changed. 

Though we came with only the faintest smattering of the Japanese 
language, we are really congratulating ourselves on the readiness with 
which we are picking up phrases, and even sentences. We can say quite 



36 THE FAR EAST. 

glibly, ohayyOy " good morning ; " mata-irasshai, " please come again ; '' 
kon-ni-chi-iva f " how do you do ? " At parting we bid our host sayonara^ 
"good-bye." Another term we hear frequently is kaido, which we find to 
mean " road," with the added distinction that it refers also to the district 
through which the highway passes, do being equivalent to the last 
signification. Thus the island of Hondo is divided into five " roads," 
imperial coach roads, and these are subdivided into several imperial by-ways. 
The first class of these famous ancient roadways are known as the Tokaido, 
or East Sea road ; the Tosando, or East Mountain road ; Hoku-ro-ku-do, 
or Northern Land road ; the Sanyodo, or Outer Mountain road ; and the 
Sanindo, or Inner Mountain road. Outside of these grand trunk roads of 
Hondo are the Hok-kaido, or North Sea region, the Saikaido, or Western 
Sea road, which embraces the islands of the south, and the Nankaido, or 
South Sea country, in Shikoku. Until recently the idea has prevailed 
that only one route was open to the travelling visitor, but it will be seen 
by this that several courses are open to him who wishes to view the 
interior of the islands. 

All of the principal cities and districts of Japan are connected by 
railways, there being over two thousand miles of completed road, and 
more than half as many more in course of construction. These are all 
operated by Japanese workmen and officials. 

We soon find that while we can visit the capital without a passport, the 
treaty regulations provide that no foreigner shall go more than twenty-five 
miles from any treaty port, and it is worse than useless to try to do it. 
He cannot even buy a railroad ticket to any place in the interior, and if 
he should try to get there by some other method of travel, he would 
invariably find himself in trouble the moment he appeared at a public- 
house, for no innkeeper would entertain him without a passport, but send 
for a policeman to take the intruder back to the treaty boundary. Having 
once broken the rules he would be denied a passport ever after. But 
trouble of this kind is very easily and quickly avoided, as a passport, good 
for a year to all parts of Japan, except Formosa, can be obtained of the 
United Consulate for a fee of one yen. This need not take more than 
two hours' time, providing the application is made in person. The British 
Consulate affords equal privileges, upon the payment of two yen. These 
passports are not transferable, but must be returned to the consulate 



JAPAN. 



37 



from which they were obtained at the expiration of the specified time. It 

is needless to say the rules and regulations are very strict to those who try 

to evade them, but quite satisfactory to him who accepts them in good faith. 

Next to a passport, the tourist who would see the country to the best 

advantage, espe- 
cially if he desires 
to get out of the 
beaten paths, needs 
a native compan- 
ion to act as guide, 
interpreter, and ad- 
viser. One can be 
obtained whose 
charge will be regu- 
lated somewhat by 
the size of the party, 
and these Japanese 
are nearly always 
found to be the 
most enjoyable com- 
panions to be met 
with anywhere. 
They are keen-wit- 
ted, courteous, and 
ever willing to en- 
tertain with stories 
and legends, from 
a fountain that 
seems inexhausti- 
ble. Truly, Japan is the land of romance, and everywhere one goes he 
finds some fanciful tale or bit of picturesque history. 

Already we have heard much of the beauty and historic interest of the 
region to our south and west, reaching on to Kyoto, the ancient capital, 
and including what has been aptly styled " the heart of Japan." But, 
first of all, we wish to see the capital of the shoguns, Tokyo, and from 
thence penetrate the mountainous country of the north, viewing, on our 




THK gatp:\vay 



38 



THE FAR EAST. 



way, famous Nikko, " the city of temples." We may come back to this 
place before visiting the Tokaido, or we may run down the coast of the 
Sea of Japan. That does not matter now. It is seldom best to travel 
with plans too rigidly prepared beforehand. 

Tokyo is situated about eighteen miles northward of Yokohama, and 

the railroad con- 
necting the two cit- 
ies was the first 
built in Japan. It 
Avas done by Eng- 
lish capitalists, who 
took advantage of 
the ignorance of 
the Japanese and 
charged an exorbi- 
tant price. This 
robbery was never 
repeated, however, 
as since that they 
have built their 
own roads, and the 
country being level, 
and grading easy, 
the cost has been 
very low. All the 
roads are narrow 
gauge, three feet 
wide, and run on 
the English plan of first, second, and third compartment. The stations 
are all neatly kept, contain separate apartments for men and women, and 
everything about them is orderly. The officials are nearly always Japan- 
ese, but they invariably wear European dress. 

The capital of Japan was originally a fishing hamlet, which was taken 
for the tenting ground of the armed followers of the sliogun, from which 
has sprung the present capital, the largest and the most sought city in 
Japan. It covers an area of a hundred square miles, mostly level country, 




IX AX OLD GARDEX OF TOKYO. 



JAPAN. 39 

contains nearly 250,000 houses, over three thousand temples, and a 
population variously estimated at from one to two millions, probably 
nearer the latter number, though it may fall short of it. As has been 
hinted, its growth in recent years has been rapid, but old ideas and 
ancient landmarks have not yielded to modern progress to the extent 
which would make Tokyo an example of foreign innovation only and 
not a picture of the past as well. Its people are pleased to ride in 
the steam-car or on the horse-railway, while they no longer look upon 
the telephone and electric lights as wonders beyond comparison. It has 
hotels kept in European style, good restaurants, museums, theatres, bazaars, 
and public parks famous for the beauty of their scenery and historic 
interest. A stroll along the length of the Ginza, the Broadway of Tokyo, 
by day or evening, is an event to the newcomer, a swift succession of 
dramatical amusements, acrobatic feats, displays of physical prowess, and 
outdoor entertainments of many and wonderful varieties, a. most friendly 
rivalry existing on every hand. At eventide, crowds of merrymaking 
people are constantly passing between rows of booths ablaze with torches 
and lantern-lights, the deep crimson of the one vying with the pale yellow 
of the other, while toys of innumerable patterns, plants, flowers, fruits, 
sweets, and fantastic trinkets of unknown names dazzle the beholder into 
buying. Everywhere is to be seen the delicate touch of adept fingers and 
the designs of an artistic eye. 

It is an inborn characteristic of the Japanese to make much of a little. 
With the few flowers which have graced their gardens, for instance, 
they have made bright their lives. Among the colours considered to be 
the best combination are red and gold, red and white coming next. Black 
is looked upon with ill-favour. As an emblem of constancy, the dried 
haliotis is considered the happiest selection. It has the double significa- 
tion of singleness of affection and continuity of that love, as the dried 
haliotis can be drawn out to an extraordinary length, like India rubber. 
The single mollusk is also typical of fidelity. The stag, in the language 
of emblems, denotes happiness; the stork, long life; the tortoise is 
emblematical of riches; the hawk is a symbol of daring; the carp 
swimming up a waterfall, of perseverance ; the bear, of endurance. 

On every hand is seen evidence that the Japanese possess two natures 
designed to be antagonistic to each other. One is a love for the grace and 



40 



THE FAR EAST. 



beauty of peace, the other is the worship of glamour and power of arms. 
When we look closely into his inner life, we find these o'ermastering 
spirits dwelling together in remarkable harmony. If he delights to 
beautify and adorn his temples with the tender grace of earthly gifts, and 
softens the frowns of the fortress walls into the smiles of the garden, it is 
that he may better appreciate his home land, and awaken in his breast a 
deeper patriotism and veneration for it. The teachings of his race for 
unnumbered generations have taught this happy combination of the 




WISTARIA BUSH. 



harmony of the warlike pageantry and the beautiful and picturesque 
offerings of Nature. This has been a fruit of feudalism. 

With this in the mind, it is easy to understand the two distinct classes 
of citizens : the sJiizoku, patricians, or military class ; the heimifi, civilians, 
or commoners. At the founding of Kyoto, the ancient capital, before the 
supremacy of the sword had placed in the front rank of power a rival 
dynasty, the difference between the upper and lower strata of population 
was less marked. The subject lived nearer to his sovereign. But this 
condition gradually changed as the shogun grew in influence, until the 
numerous class comprising the tillers of the soil, the fishermen, the 



JAPAN. 



41 



traders and traffickers of commodities, had nothing in common with 
the aristocratic patricians who had assumed the reins of government by 
armed force. The commoner came to know nothing of the ambition of 
mihtary glory, of the pleasure of office, and pride in the dazzling corteges 
of war. He even lost desire for competition in the intellectual pursuits 
which tend to elevate humanity, and he grew content to be as inferior in 




THE "GARDEN OF THE LAKE," KYOTO. 



mental capacity as his humble dwellings were inferior to the impressive 
castles of his superiors. 

Prior to the reign of Emperor Kwammu, 782-805 A. d., it had been 
customary for each succeeding ruler to select his royal residence wherever 
his own convenience suited him. Thus the castle of the emperor was 
naturally chosen for his royal palace, and in this way many towns became, 
in their turn, the site of the imperial government. Owing to the extreme 
simplicity of the royal train, this change of abode did not incur great 
expense or inconvenience. The life of the sovereign was little different 
from that of his people. It thus happened that the capital itself was 



42 THE FAR EAST. 

subject to change, and even the imperial court was sometimes moved two 
or three times during the reign of a single monarch. 

With the advance of civilisation, increase of pomp, and growth of 
commercial interests, all, with their increasing expense and growing 
intricacies of government, rising, by gradual stages, from almost primeval 
simplicity to a scale of magnificence and splendour difficult to credit to 
that period, at the beginning of the eighth century the capital was 
established at Nara by the Empress Gemmyo. Thus the fame and power 
of womankind in Japan was awakened by the association of the name of 
one of the sex with the initial tribute of display and dignity offered to 
royalty. 

Seven successive sovereigns held their courts at Nara, and it was looked 
upon as the permanent capital, when Emperor Kwammu decided that it 
was not favourably situated as the centre of administrative power. With 
great ceremonial display he moved the imperial court to Uda, in the 
province of Yamoshiro. This act was received as a matter for national 
rejoicing, and the new capital was named Heiau-jo, which meant " Citadel 
of Tranquillity." 

But if the choice of the people, — a city of peace, — the new capital 
was not adapted to the growing power of the military regents. The 
situation was not convenient to maintain a watch and control over 
the river-ways leading into the interior, so the shogun looked about for a 
spot better suited to his aims and ambition. One Ota Dokan, about 1460, 
built a fortress at Yedo, though even he did not dream that this rude 
beginning was to lay the foundation for the future seat of government. 
The fortification stood apart from the small collection of fishermen's huts 
marking the place, and was surrounded by a vast expanse of . reed plains, 
where it would be easy to deploy the army. Surrounded by a great series 
of rivers, and flanked by a range of mountains, with the sacred Fujiyama 
as the snow-crowned sentinel, the situation proved very satisfactory to the 
military regents, who continued to strengthen themselves in this position, 
holding the passes to the interior against the enemies from the southland. 
The welfare or the desire of the people never once entering into the plans 
of the builders, from the rough fortress of Ota Dokan was evolved the 
stronghold that made Yedo a powerful citadel at the close of the sixteenth 
century. 



In 1590 A. D., as the reward of the warlike genius of Japan's Napoleon, 
General lyeyasu, Yedo became the capital of eight provinces, under the 
first of the Tokugawa regents. Regardless of the privileges of the common 
people, colossal fortresses were erected wherever it was deemed expedient, 
until, had it not been for the kindness of Nature in allowing the big rivers 
to extend the land out into the sea by a deposit of their debris, there 
would not have been room enough for the million of inhabitants who 
reared their simple dwellings under the walls of the frowning battlements 
without a thought of what they portended. 

The shogun, with his increasing prestige, sought display of his power 
and prosperity on every hand. He surrounded the warlike castle by a 
triple line of huge fosses, the outermost one of which measured nine and 
a half miles in length, while that of the inside was one and a half miles. 
Their scarps were built of mighty blocks of granite that had been brought 
hundreds of miles over sea and land, to be set in their lofty position by 
such rude contrivances as to create wonder over the work in this age of 
improvements. Deep banks of earth topped the huge walls of masonry, 
their slopes carefully covered with a sward of Corean grasses. Seeds of 
the pine were then planted in regular rows, and the shoots were trained 
so that the evergreen branches of the trees reached down toward the 
broad moats, through which flowed streams of water, conveyed hither in 
aqueducts from a river a score of miles away. These ditches varied 
in width from sixty to five hundred feet. Along with the pride and the 
artifice of the trained warrior were to be seen the peaceful symbols of 
the artist and the peacemaker. Not only were the dark reflections of the 
pines shown in the silvery waters, but the moats became the pleasure 
scenes of flocks of beautiful ducks and wild birds of matchless plumage, 
or they found peaceful rest in lakes of tranquil charm under the very 
shade of the battlements. Not only did the lawn-like slopes under their 
velvety carpets afford a happy contrast to the trampled earth of the city 
streets, but lotus flowers, growing in the crevices of the rocky walls, 
portrayed, to the enraptured observer, in unwritten language, love's 
imagery of the peace and repose thrown over the frowning ramparts of a 
" city of war," where the nobler gifts of man had converted the frowns of 
a fortress into the smiles of a garden. 

From this period is to be dated the wonderful outgrowth of landscape- 



44 



THE FAR EAST. 



gardening, in which respect Japan stands without a rival. That they 
might not ignore or forget their allegiance to the "eastern capital," as 
the camp of the military regents was called out of distinction to the 
capital of the imperial line at Kyoto, which was designated as " the western 
capital/' the provincial barons, or chief supporters of the shoguns, were 
required to live in Yedo, since named Tokyo, one-half of each year. It 
thus became necessary for them to build homes for themselves and 




A TRIMMED JATAXESE PINE-TREE. 



numerous retainers. In carrying out this idea, a strong rivalry sprung 
up between the respective nobles, which resulted in a gain to the city. 
Many commodious mansions were erected, and numerous picturesque parks 
were laid out and beautified from year to year. It is true these were 
carefully protected from the vulgar gaze of the public, and the average 
citizen knew little, if anything, of them, but in the course of two and a 
half centuries the city became a veritable garden. The work and loving 
skill bestowed upon them was beyond estimation. Their equal was not to 
be seen elsewnere. 



JAPAN. 



45 



In order to fulfil his dream of such a place, the Japanese gardener must 
have rocks upon which to train his flowering vines, — rocks for the beds of 
cascades, rocks for the angles of corners and hillsides, rocks for margins 
to lakes and streams, rocks for the edges of shrubberies, rocks to border 
the paths, in short, rocks everywhere, all arranged with skill and alluring 
effect. These rocks had all to be brought from distant provinces and far- 
away islands. As well as pebbles and boulders, some of the last as large 




ROCKERY AND CASCADE, FUKIAGE GARDEN. 



as half a dozen men could raise from the ground, were massive blocks of 
granite, many of them weighing tons each, and requiring the united 
efforts of several yoke of oxen and long lines of coolies to move to the 
places selected for their use. 

Within these costly and beautiful parks were the dwellings of the 
military representatives of feudalism, living in houses that were marvels 
of the skill of the builders, and the matchless purity of the wood from 
which they were constructed. Here, though filled with the armed retainers 
of the feudal power, was to be seen very little indication of warlike 



46 THE FAR EAST. 

preparation, except that near to the gate stood rows of long, low sheds, 
their outward walls marked at intervals with heavily barred windows, 
while the most prominent article of furniture in all the rooms was the 
rack for the swords. 

These buildings were the barracks of each baron's men-at-arms, and the 
streets were so lined with them, and so thronged with these armed 
retainers strutting about with their swords girt to them, that, during 
the era of feudalism, Tokyo, the eastern capital, in spite of the languid 
peace hovering over the pine-scented embattlements, the green carpet of 
its terraces, the wild birds floating dreamily along its waterways, the 
fantastic drapery of its rockeries, its picturesque parks and gardens, bore 
unmistakable signs of its true origin and purpose. 

With the march of succeeding rulers from this military feudalism to the 
shizoku, or hegemony, which rules progressive Japan to-day, a radical 
transition has taken place in the appearance of this city of imperialism, 
though the contrast between the upper and the lower spheres has remained 
the same. The battlements of the ancient fortresses were suffered to 
tumble down, and the bush and creeping vine find foothold where erstwhile 
stood the flanking tower ; the broad fosses of the citadel allowed to fill 
with debris and become the sites of peaceful dwellings ; the ponderous gate 
opening upon the fortress rusted from its hinges, while the citadel itself 
became the residence of a civilian. With the disappearance of all this 
vanished the fine baronies, the street pageants of marching men ; the 
graceful parks have been despoiled of their treasures, the rockeries 
ravaged, until the dazzling evidence of feudal glory that once was para- 
mount in Tokyo is now eloquent only by its silence and the emptiness of 
space where its monuments stood. 




EXAMPLES OF QUAINT AKCHITECTURE. 



CHAPTER V. 



THE MODERN CAPITAL. 



WHEN Japan awoke from her long sleep through that morning 
drowse, called the Meiji era, — beginning of improvement, — she 
moved slowly, in changing old ways for new, and continued to 
carry out her system of education, developed new organisations of govern- 
ment, enlarged her ideas of industry, and enforced her laws from official 
quarters as simple and barren of ornament as before. These buildings 
were plain, rectangular structures, without any relief given their walls by 
portico, faQade, veranda, balcony, or lordly steeple, until foreign architec- 
ture arose on the ruins of a power lost with the departed greatness of a 
line of rulers giving way to another. So pretentious piles of stone and 
brick — governmental buildings of modern grandness, a court-house, banks, 
municipal edifices, ministerial residences, hotels, and club-rooms — have 
risen with remarkable quickness in plain sight of acres and acres of the old 
style, including communal schools, telegraph offices, post-office, and police 
barracks. 

Thus Tokyo presents a marked example of modern progress, and, at the 

same time, a singular compound of the old and the new. It has been a 

47 



48 THE FAR EAST. 

rule that whenever new buildings should be raised on a narrow street, 
the latter should be widened. As fast as fire has obliterated a certain 
portion, the houses erected have been set back, until there are broad, 
ambitious streets, but with the same lack of foreign architecture as in the 
days of the shogun. This plainness of style is particularly noticeable in 
the poorer portions, where fires are the most common. In this manner 
Tokyo shows, as no other city does, an impressive picture of the transi- 
tion of Japan from the despotism of the past to the imperialism of the 
present. 

No city has suffered as this has from earthquakes. In 1703 thirty- 
seven thousand people perished Tuider crumbling houses or from the 
overflow of the sea. In 1855 this terrible loss was doubled, and seventeen 
thousand buildings were thrown down or burned. But it has now been 
nearly fifty years since there has been any widespread alarm. 

The average tourist, upon entering a strange city, first looks about for 
some spot where he can command a view of the whole scene at a single 
sweep of the vision. Tokyo has a most favourable height for this sort of 
sightseeing, and as he begins to ascend the long stone stairway leading 
to its summit, he is confronted by an architectural gateway built of 
granite, which immediately arrests his steps. This is called in Japanese 
the torii, meaning literally " the bird's nest." From this it is currently 
accepted to have had its origin in the intention of a humane people to 
afford a resting-place for the feathered creatures they loved so well. 

Be this the case or not, farther back into the past than history or 
tradition goes, it has marked the approach to a temple or shrine emblemati- 
cal of the old Shinto faith or religion. Two upright shafts are met and 
crossed at the top by horizontal bars, the rude frame being constructed of 
wood, granite, or bronze, as the builder chose. As simple as they are in 
construction, seen everywhere in Japan, even the foreigner soon begins 
to admire them, and then to look for them. No hand has ever been 
known to mutilate one of them, and when long double rows of 
them lead under the overhanging arms of Japanese pines, with lines 
of stone lanterns lighting the scene by night, they recall, in an impressive 
manner, the hallowed scene of devoted bands of men silently seeking the 
shrine of some deity whom they sought to propitiate by suitable offerings 
and prayers. 



JAPAN. 



49 



Passing under this particular torii, with a deep feeling of religious 
veneration in spite of our modern doubts of ancient belief, we slowly ascend 
to the summit. The panorama spread out before us is something too vast 
for comprehension. What strikes us most forcibly at first is the truth of 
the common expression that Tokyo is a " city of magnificent distances." 
One of the noted objects that we try to discover is the emperor's palace, 
which very appropriately stands on an eminence that lifts it far above the 




STONE LANTERN MARKING APPROACH TO A SUHINE. 



noisy streets and buildings around the moat. But as high as its strong 
walls are raised, the pines surrounding them lift still higher their roof of 
evergreen, completely overshadowing them. Below, where their gnarled 
and rugged bodies stand out in bold relief, smaller trees and shrubs fill in 
the spaces, as if it were forbidden that the curious gaze of the sightseer 
should look upon the palace within. High walls encircle the hill, a gate 
now and then offering entrance to the imperial grounds. Lower down, 
green banks slope away to the edge of the moat, where flocks of wild 
ducks swim and float on the bright waters without fear, for no shot is 



50 



THE FAR EAST. 



allowed to be fired within sound of the royal palace embowered in the 
pines and cherries. 

A place of interest, which no tourist fails to visit, is Aasakusa Park, 
w^here is to be seen that Chinese importation, the pagoda, and the great 
tower, with its bell that is rung at regular intervals until its resonant tone 
is heard all over the city. Here is to be found the Temple of Aasakusa, 
dedicated to Kwannon, an image of unknown antiquity, never seen, but 
worshipped with great display of reverence. It is said to have been 




CHERRY BANK, TOKYO. 



caught in the net of a nobleman fishing off the coast, and is only an inch 
and three-fourths in height. Perhaps the remarkable difference between 
the size of the deity and the greatness of the temple is the most observed 
feature of the place. 

Another place of note and beauty is the cherry bank of Koganei, an 
avenue two and a half miles in length along the canal, and lined with 
cherry-trees. In April, when these flowering trees are radiant with 
blossoms, no fairer sight can be seen even in Japan. No other people can 
appreciate them as the Japanese, and for centuries their poets have sung 
their praises and their artists painted their beauties. What the rose is to 



JAPAN. 51 

the people of America, the cherry is to the Land of the Rising Sun, and 
the time of their blossoming is made a season of national festival. Vast 
numbers of admiring men, women, and children come from far and near 
to feast their sight upon the white and pink blossoms unfolding to the 
spring air. The world is young again with the blooming of the cherry, 
and hearts that were sad a short time since become light, for it is a gala 
season with men as well as Nature. Boats laden with happy pleasure- 
seekers glide along the level stream overhung by the trees, that look like 
huge flowering plants, while the occupants gaze dreamily up into the 
meshes of flowers with their settings of light-green leaves. Others wander 
longingly on the banks, intent on the happiness and beauty of the day and 
scene. 

If Tokyo's greatest fetes are held under the cherry blossoms, with the 
clear blue of the April sky overhead, when Uyeno Park and Mukojima 
River are converted into floral paradises beyond the Occidental comparison 
of beauty, these carnivals find a close rival in the festival of the great 
wistaria at Kameido Temple in May, when that ancient vine puts forth 
flowers three and four feet in length. A month later the iris gardens of 
Hori Kiri aifford a rare flower-show, calling out large crowds of admirers. 

August offers another candidate for public favour in the sacred lotus 
flower, whose broad leaves cover the moats in Tokyo, and are to be found 
in lovely lotus ponds of acres in extent. These plants are often four feet in 
diameter, and the flowers from twelve to sixteen inches across. These 
pink and white blossoms, emanating from muddy, stagnant water with a 
matchless purity and freshness, are looked upon as a symbol of religious 
life. It is a saying of the Buddhist priests that though one " is born in a 
hovel, he can have virtue, like the lotus flower springing from the slime." 
It is the one flower of the faith of Buddha, about which is associated the 
hidden mysteries of mortal and spiritual existence. Statues of Buddha 
have generally as a pedestal a skilfully carved lotus-leaf in stone or bronze, 
while on the altars are vases of bronze filled with these flowers made of 
the same metal. The lotus also grows wild in the rural districts, but does 
not equal here the size of the flower and leaf of India, and these are called 
the " flowers of death," because they have become a funeral adjunct. 

Greater than any of these festivals of flowers is that of the national 
flower, the chrysanthemum, which opens in the Dangozaka section, the last 



52 



THE FAR EAST. 



of October. This is beyond doubt the greatest exhibition of the kind in 
the world, and no fancier of flowers dreams of the beauties and the possi- 
bilities of this Japanese favourite until he has seen it at the zenith of 
its glory in its native land. It has been fittingly described as a model 
of symmetry whose " shape well fits it to symbolise the completeness of 
perfection which the Mikado, the Son of Heaven, mundanely represents. 
It typifies, too, the fullness of the year. It may be of almost any hue, 




WATER MILL, COLENBA. 



and, within the general limits of a circle, of any form. Now it is a chariot 
wheel, with petals for spokes, while another kind seems the button of 
some natural legion of honour, and still another a pinwheel in Nature's 
own day fireworks." 

During the chrysanthemum festival everything at the court of Tokyo 
is made emblematical of the national flower, and even the imperial com- 
munications are made upon chrysanthemum paper. Everywhere one sees 
the bright round splash, which looks more like a drop fallen from the 
golden censer than an imitation of the flower of the season, which ushers 



JAPAN. 



53 



in a gala day for the capital. It is arranged to have the exhibit at its 
height uDon the birthday of the emperor, on the 3d of November, and 
rejoicing reigns on every hand. 

Masters of the art of landscape-gardening as they are, the Japanese 
have paid especial care to the cultivation and improvement of the chrys- 
anthemum until they have brought it nearer to perfection than anybody 
else. They have produced plants that bear more than four hundred 
perfect flowers, and it is not infrequent to see half a dozen varieties 




CHRYSANTHEMUM SELLER. 



growing on a single plant. The different varieties, in all, number over 
two hundred and fifty. Its flowering period being longer than that of 
most flowers, they have naturally assigned to it the attribute of longevity, 
and one river, which receives on its placid bosom many of these falling 
leaves, is believed to hold in its waters the charm to give him who drinks 
it long and beautiful life. 

In our interest in these festivals of the flowers, we quite overlooked 
another holiday, which comes in September, and marks the end of the 
summer boat-life. This is what is called "moon viewing," and the same 
taste and skill that has decked the walls of the palaces and sacred build- 



54 THE FAR EAST. 

ings with festoons of vines and flowering plants, and concealed the 
forbidding palisades of the war fortresses by the same happy means, has 
constructed the moon-gazer's arbours. Here he lies and dreams, while his 
poetical fancy finds expression in some felicitous song : 

"A sycamore boat on a sea of mist, 

The moon sails, coasting by isles of amber, 
And trembles now, in my cup, I wist, 

And stands poised over my leafy chamber. 

"The shadows break on the waves afar, 

Cool blows the breeze from the forest yonder; 
And forth, convoyed by many a star, 

In the open heaven, she goes, — a wonder ! " 



M^alki/ig Cost unit 



CHAPTER VI. 

CUSTOMS AND COSTUMES. 

IT cannot be truly said that Tokyo has a fashionable promenade, 
where the well-dressed seek to display the latest style ; but along 
any of the main streets the emperor and his suite may pass any day, 
while at the parade ground of Hibiya the sovereign and his court are seen 
at their best. Another place to witness fashionable and sporting life is 
the race-course of Uyeno, or that of Kudan, where the free and careless 
elements of society hold high carnival in spring and autumn. But in 
Japan, as in other countries, it is necessary to go among the people at 
home to get a correct idea of their customs and costumes. 

When, a few years since, the government directed that all officials on 
duty adopt the dress of Europe, it looked as though the old styles peculiar 
to the country were doomed to be supplanted. A tidal wave had already 
set in against the native fashion, in favour of Parisian or Berlin styles. 
Until then, 1886, the empress had stoutly resisted all attempts to intro- 
duce the dress of foreigners, which, if it did not detract from the native 
beauty of the women, did seriously interfere with their comfort. Then the 
rage for foreign costumes became general, until no Japanese lady was con- 
sidered anything but a dowdy who did not hamper her comely person 
with a gown of the Occident. This craze prevailed for a few years, when 
a reaction followed. Now it does not seem improbable that there may be 
a complete return to the original costume of the people. It is to be 
hoped so, for no other style of dress seems so much a part of the great 
plan of nature to enhance the beauty of features, gestures, and personal 
grace. 

The dress for the men consists of a loin-cloth of muslin, a silk or cotton 
shirt, and the kimofio, a sort of gown suspended from the shoulders and 
girded at the waist by a silken belt. If the weather is cold, this gown is 
wadded, and more than one worn if necessary. Over all of these the 
wearer dons the hakama, or divided skirt, which is fastened by cords run- 

55 



56 



THE FAR EAST. 



ning around the waist. To the last is then added the haori, a sort of 
cloak tied in front by a knotted silken cord. Both of these last garments 
are made of the finest material, and are generally laid aside when the 
wearer enters his home, as we should doff our top-coat in the house. The 
haori, made of black silk, bears the crest of the wearer on the back of the 
sleeves. The hak- 
ama is made gen- 
erally of a striped 
material. 

The foot is in- 
cased in a low 
sock, which 
reaches to the an- 
kle, and is called 
the tahi. It has a 
separate part for 
the great toe, as 
our gloves have 
for the thumb. 
These socks are of 
blue or white cot- 
ton, made thicker 
and stronger on 
the soles. Slippers 
made of straw are 
worn about the 
house, while for 
short walks- the 
geta, or wooden 

clog, is worn after the manner of sandals. At the doors of all shops, rows 
of these clogs are hung outside the door, and visitors are expected to put 
on a pair before entering. 

Until the introduction of foreign caps and hats, which are now favour- 
ably received, no covering was generally worn on the head, the fan being 
used to protect the cranium from the hot sun. Wide-rimmed, mushroom- 
shaped hats are now frequently worn by the natives. 




LADIES C(»>iL-M, 



JAPAN. 



57 



When indoors the yukata, or bath-gown, often takes the place of the 
kimono, and the gentleman sits for a long time at his ease before or after 
his ablutions, which are invariably performed near the close of the day. 
A large tub of water, heated as warm as the hand can bear it, is placed 
over a boiler so that the liquid may be kept to its proper temperature 
throughout the bath. 

In olden times every Japanese gentleman, when out-of-doors, wore his 
two swords, which he laid aside upon entering his dwelling. These war- 




THE COM n AT WITH SWORD 



like instruments have now been supplanted by those articles of less offence 
and defence, the tobacco-pipe, and pouch. This indulgence is everywhere 
popular, in all classes and with both men and women. The pipes gener- 
ally have stems from six to ten inches in length, with bowls of sufficient 
size to hold merely tobacco enough for a couple of whiffs. So the Japanese 
smoker spends more time in filling his pipe than in enjoying its fragrant 
breath. This method was introduced by the Portuguese at the beginning 
of the 17th century. Cigars are now considered fashionable, and cigarettes 
have become favourites with many. Millions of the latter are now con- 



58 THE FAR EAST. 

sumed monthly in the large cities, the leaf from which they are made 
being raised in the southern provinces. It is no uncommon sight to see 
little groups of women, drawn up around the fireplaces, enjoying their 
pipes, often made of silver, while they gossip and exchange pretty stories. 

Coming back to the matter of dress, men of the lower classes have a 
custom of displaying on the backs of their garments a large ideograph, 
which indicates their occupation, or their master's name. Carpenters are 
invariably marked in this manner. A close-fitting momoliki worn about 
the thighs, a gaiter of dark-blue cotton, a straw hat, shaped like an inverted 
punch-bowl, trimmed with a blue band, and straw sandals, comprise the 
garb of a large percentage of the working class. The coolies, whenever 
out of sight of the officials who are instructed to prevent it, strip off every- 
thing but the loin-cloth the greater part of the year. 

The costume of the woman is but slightly different from that of her 
male companion. An apron, or short petticoat, perhaps two, are worn 
beneath her kimono, a cord around the waist keeping so much of her dress 
in place. As the weather grows cooler, an extra kimono is put on over the 
first, and this is repeated until sometimes six or eight are being worn, and 
the very outlines of the figure of the wearer are lost. An ohi, or belt, a foot 
and a half wide and often a dozen feet in length, is wound over all of these. 
It should be said that the obi is an object of great personal pride, costing 
as high as seventy-five dollars, so that the lady's whole outfit, to say noth- 
ing of the jewelry and trinkets she may wear, often costs two hundred 
dollars. But the Japanese husband is seldom opposed to this outlay, as 
the true gentleman is anxious his wife should be well dressed, even if he 
goes shabby himself. 

In the matter of dressing her hair, the Japanese woman takes especial 
care and pride, a professional hair-dresser being employed and two hours 
taken in which to perform the task. In holding the large mass of coils 
and knots in position, large metal pins with coral head-pieces are commonly 
used. The hair is loaded with oil and bandoline, to hold it in place, and 
on account of the amount of work required to dress it, is not taken down 
but once a week. For this reason the sleeping-block of curved wood, 
shaped to fit the neck, is used at night for a pillow. 

The children are not subject to any strict rule as to being covered, but 
when they are considered old enough to leave nudity behind with their 



JAPAN. 



59 



childhood, they don garments after the plan of their parents. Needless 
to say, these are accepted nnder protest. 

The Japanese consider it no disgrace that their ancestors lived on the 
plainest of fare, earned at the cost of extreme hard labour, so they make 
their presents to their 
friends accompanied 
by a symbol of sea- 
weed and dried fish, 
which was the great 
staple food of their 
forefathers. It is this 
frugality which has 
enabled the race to 
rise slowly from the 
plane of poverty to 
the present height of 
comparative prosper- 
ity. It is also this 
same simplicity in the 
manner of living 
which has kept their 
bodies so free from 
the connnon ills of 
the flesh to which 
other races are prone. 
No meal is served in 
Japan, without a 
course of rice at its 
conclusion, or if 
served without, it is not considered complete. This cereal is thus 
the one great article of diet throughout the empire. Whatever else 
is eaten is accepted as so much to prepare the way for rice. This need 
not be taken to mean that any part of the food or drink is of a stimulat- 
ing nature. 

In the principal cities and villages the foreign style of food, as well as 
the foreign manner of serving it, has been largely adopted. How soon 




A HAIR - DRESSER. 



60 



THE FAR EAST. 



this custom becomes universal remains to be seen, but it will be better for 
the native population if the change is accepted slowly. 

After fruits and sweets have been served first, not last, according to our 
way, fish follows, and then an omelet, a chicken fricasseed to a nicety, raw 
mullet, or sea-bream ; all this washed down by sake, a wholesome beverage 
obtained from rice. The wine is then removed, and rice appears, accom- 
panied by a cup of tea. It should be observed that the habit of drinking 
sake or wine at meals is not universal, and that the beverage contains but 




MACARONI AND TEA. 



little alcohol. With the poorer class but one course precedes the rice, 
and that is either broiled fish or vegetable soup. Beef is not eaten gener- 
ally, and less frequently than formerly. Poultry is considered too expen- 
sive, and pork is looked upon as being unclean. When a foreigner first 
introduced pork hash it aroused a storm of horror and indignation. Eggs 
are extensively eaten, and are kept in stock, after being hard-boiled, at all 
wayside booths. 

The dishes commonly included in a set festival or banquet are bean curd 
soup, pounded fish baked as a roll or cut into slices, lotus roots boiled in 
soy, stewed chestnuts, the nasu, or eggplant, tender shoots of the bamboo. 



JAPAN. 



61 



radishes, and the never-to-be-missed daikon, a native vegetable with an 
odour few foreigners can tolerate kindly. Instead of the knife and fork, 
chopsticks are furnished at all inns, and they will be found on the tray 
holding the food enclosed in a paper napkin. They are separated, except 
by a bit of wood at the top, and upon being pulled apart a toothpick is 
found secreted within. They are thrown away after being used once. 
Travellers in Japan must not expect to obtain meats to any extent, butter, 




LADIES AT DINNER. 



milk, bread, or wholesome water. His diet will be mainly rice, fish, and 
eggs, his drink, tea or sake. 

Green tea is the universal beverage in Japan. It is drunk very w^eak, 
without sugar or milk. Every traveller passing through a village or town 
is offered a cup without thought of recompense on the part of the giver, 
though if tribute is tendered it is accepted with a courteous acknowledg- 
ment of the donor's genergsity. If the European or the American is not 
satisfied with this simple diet at first, he eventually finds that he is bene- 
fited by it. 

The Japanese housewife takes as much pride in the way she sets her 
tiny table, called ze7i, as any of her American sisters, while perfect decorum 



62 THE FAR EAST. 

exists throughout the meal. The Japanese is by nature extremely polite, 
and nowhere does he exhibit this good breeding to better advantage than 
at the dinner-table. He seldom laughs over the blunders of a foreigner at 
his table, and is quick to condemn the faults of one of his countrymen. 
No matter under what circumstances a stranger meets him, he is exceed- 
ingly pleasant, never forgetting or omitting his low, gracious curtsey. 
On entering liis house, the visitor is expected to remove his shoes, and he 
walks in his stockings over floors as smooth and clean as the tops of tables 
in other lands. 

The marriage relation is more of a civil than of a religious obligation, 
though the last sentiment is entering deeper into the ceremony. It has 
always been the rule for no one to marry out of rank, and the gentle- 
man belonging to the military class could not retain his social standing by 
becoming the spouse of the daughter of a trader or merchant, nor could 
the latter marry one beneath her caste and keep her position. But all 
this is gradually losing ground in these cosmopolitan days. In the times 
of feudalism, nobles and chiefs could not contract the ties of matrimony 
without the consent of the court. 

Under the old customs the housewife was at the head of the household, 
nominally, but she really held a position inferior to her husband. If she 
was honoured as the mistress of the home, she was not allowed to sit with 
her master, the Shiijin, except at evening meal. Nor were her chil- 
dren given greater privilege. This, thanks very largely to the Empress 
Haruko, has materially changed, until no woman in all the Far East is 
more respected, or accorded greater privileges, than the tender, loving 
wife and mother of a Japanese household. She is a model of cleanliness, 
of faithfulness to her duties, and in economical management. Bright, 
vivacious, pretty, petite, with an innate refinement and modest demeanour 
that is sure to attract attention, Japanese women deserve all the recogni- 
tion shown them. While children are loved and well treated, large families 
are an exception, the average household numbering less than five. 




A TYPICAL JAPANESE LADY. 




SCENE IN NIKKO. 



CHAPTER YII. 



CITY AND COUNTRY. 



WE are constantly hearing praises sung of a village lying in the 
heart of the northern mountains called Nikko, " the city of 
temples." Nowhere else shall we find such shrines of worship 
and nowhere else such magnificent scenery. In fact, the use of that adjec- 
tive reminds us of the saying which has become a Japanese proverb, which 
runs like this : 

" Nikko ivo minai uchi iva, ' kekko ' to id na ! " 

Given a free translation this means : " Until you have seen Nikko, the 
word ' magnificent ' is meaningless." 

The annual matsuri is soon due at this sacred retreat ; thousands of 
excursionists are planning to take a trip northward, and report comes in 
that large parties of pilgrims are already on their way by foot to the 
famous place. So we decide to postpone further sightseeing in Tokyo 
and go with the crowd. But we have to wait until another day, and that 



64 



THE FAR EAST. 



evening we catch a vivid picture of the " flower of Yedo," so that we are 
glad we had not hastened our flight from the capital. 

There have been some disastrous fires of late, which fact is made plain 
to the most casual observers by the acres of charred and blackened build- 
ing sites. Under the bane of this fiery curse, it is no wonder Tokyo, a 
city of paper, bamboo, and wood, has not outgrown faster its poverty 
marks. The wonder is that it has reached its present gigantic dimensions. 
Not long since, the firemen had to depend on the hand-buckets and a 
supply of water from some near-by moat ; but now the fire-engine takes 
the place of this method. Still the manner of fighting fire is yet some- 
what primitive compared to ours. Outside of each engine-house a tall 
ladder is set perpendicularly, with a railed platform at the top, looking 
like the crow's-nest of a man-of-war in bygone days. A bronze bell is 
hung from a beam within reach of this, and a watchman is expected to 
keep a close survey over the city as far as he can see, and, at the out- 
break of flames within his range of vision, to ring the bell. If the fire is 
in his immediate neighbourhood he strikes this but once ; if it is farther 
away, twice ; and so on, until he has indicated the distance and the direc- 
tion. The sight of this wiry little fireman swinging between heaven and 
earth, like a huge spider hanging from some lofty perch, is one to make 
the timid watcher shudder for his safety at first look. This is swiftly 
forgotten as the bell sends out its warning, especially if it stops short 
at the first stroke. Then there is bustle and hustle, for the fire is near 
at hand, and it may be our own home will become its prey. 

Under the old system a singular code of customs sprang up around the 
lives of the primitive firemen that was both picturesque and appropriate. 
They were not allowed to appear at a fire except in a particular cos- 
tume, which was made of bright colours, and highly ornamented. A sort 
of religious hymn was sung by the firemen, while companions stood at a 
safe distance on adjoining roofs with grotesque bulletins, on which had 
been painted sacred and demoniacal images, held over their heads to terrify 
off the legions of flames. In those days, it is claimed that not a night, for 
a quarter of a century, passed over Tokyo without a fire in some part of 
the city. 

Were it not for the earthquake, more substantial houses would be built 
than these of inflammable wood and lighter material. But the brick house 



JAPAN. 65 

is more to be feared in case of the shock, and so the people keep on 
raising dwellings, which seem little more than torches for the flames. 
This fire, whose alarm so aroused our interest, proves to be a slight 
affair, so we return to our couches, and dream of forests, of temples, and 
shrines, with long columns of pilgrims, footsore and weary, marching 
to offer their annual tribute to some god whose favour is especially 
sought. 

Nikko lies ninety-one miles north of Tokyo, and is reached by a railroad 
running through one of the finest agricultural districts of all Japan. The 
country is just broken enough to give it variety without injuring its farm- 
ing value. Everywhere the fertile plains, irrigated from the streams 
winding across their bosoms like ribbons of silver, are dotted with 
thatch-roofed farmhouses, one an exact imitation of another, and this 
uniformity characterises the size of the farms, all of them being small. 
The largest is not more than an acre in extent, and the smallest but a few 
rods in area, one and all outlined by ditches, along the rim of which the 
loftus lifts its beautiful crest. Not a foot of land is allowed to go to 
waste in this country where nothing is lost, though everything seems to 
be made on a miniature plan, — tiny houses, tiny carriages, tiny gardens, 
tiny farms, tiny animals, tiny people — but, taken altogether, apparently 
as prosperous and happy as those of larger stature and doing business on a 
broader scale. And well they may be, for the grand whole of these uniting 
mites make acres of rice-fields, acres of tea plantations, acres of fine fruit 
orchards, acres of vineyards, — the grape-vines trained to cover bamboo 
frames, and even the pear-trees made to rest over trellises. Everywhere 
and on everything is displayed the cunning handiwork of the skilful and 
industrious husbandman. Nature, too, is seen at her best, modestly offer- 
ing such matchless fancy work as she can afford only in Japan. Hillsides 
are festooned, and river banks, fringed with the deep green bamboo, while 
the ridges between the rice-fields, the very ditches, and the thatched 
roofs, the only places available for them, are decked with flowers of many 
hues. Among these floral bounties is a lily of bright crimson, whose 
blood-red tassels, tossed by thousands in the early autumn breeze, present 
a vivid picture. 

The corn-field of Japan is the field of rice. This cereal grows abun- 
dantly, south of the 3^th parallel, and five millions of people are engaged 



m 



THE FAR EAST. 



in its cultivation, directly or indirectly. Eaten three times a day for 365 
days in a year, with an added day every year in four, there is still a 
surplus to send abroad, and the rice export trade is getting to be some- 
thing of an item. The most prolific fields are found in the districts of 
Tokaido and Sanyodo, though the crop yields well wherever grown. 

Rice is started in a nursery, where it expands blade by blade into a 
mosslike mass. Then, in a month or two, each rootlet lias to be carefully 
separated and transplanted to a larger bed. Later, as the summer comes 




*-•?. 



A ^ 






Mr? • 



Ml 



PLANTING RICE. 



on, the tender shoots are again changed, this time from their muddy foot- 
ing to be set in long rows across the moist lowlands. Their growth from 
this time is surprisingly rapid, and soon the waving tassels are flaunting in 
the breeze. The harvest of the grain is an important one, — so important 
that the owner counts his riches not by hard dollars but by his number of 
Jcokii, or bags of rice. This cereal is planted at different times, so there 
are several harvests. 

While rice is the staple food, and enough is really raised to support the 
inhabitants, with a surplus to send abroad, wheat and barley are grown to 



JAPAN. 



67 



a considerable extent. In the extreme north barley bread forms a large 
part of the diet. Millet is sometimes eaten instead of rice. This custom 
prevailed more in ancient times than now. Besides the above crops, 
maize is grown in the southern provinces ; also oats and vetches, as prov- 
ender for the stock. 

Among the vegetables the yam ranks easily first, growing abundantly 
in the southern islands of Kyushu and the Satsuma country, which is 
famous for its pottery. In some districts, Avhere the inhabitants live too 




VEGETABLE SELLER. 



far from the seashore to get fish, and too far removed from the markets 
to buy them, they subsist almost entirely on rice or millet, and a big 
white radish, called by tliem daikon. This last often attains a length of 
nearly three feet. As might be expected, the soil and climate of Japan 
are favourable to the growth of several kinds of vegetables unknown in 
this country. There is an eggplant, a pear-shaped fruit of a bright purple 
colour, which is very edible when boiled. A species of fern has tops which 
are sweet and tender if eaten when they are young. There are also beets 
and tomatoes in the central regions, with melons and cucumbers in the 



68 THE FAR EAST. 

south. Sugar-cane is also cultivated in the last region to quite an 
extent. 

In the matter of fruit, either the gods that are credited with making 
the Land of the Rising Sun were not partial to this luxury, or they com- 
mitted a grievous oversight, as Japan has been treated most niggardly in 
that respect. It is true there are fruit-trees enough, such as they are, but 
with the exception of the orange, they are pitiable failures. There are 
pears, apples, peaches, apricots, and so on, but they are true only in name. 
The size is inferior, and the flavour is missing. Hence many of them, 
noticeably the pear, are prized for their blossoms rather than their fruit. 
This deficiency, however, is being supplied by transplanting fruit-trees 
from the United States and other countries. The soil and climate seem 
adapted to the growth of these, and before many years Japan will be a 
fruit-growing land. 

Native grape-vines grow abundantly, and are often seen trailing over the 
entrance to some dwelling. The California grape, introduced a few years 
since, tlirives exceedingly w^ell, and already handsome vineyards are to be 
seen. The fruit has been put on the market, and finds a ready demand. 

On the whole, the empire of the Far East is fairly well supplied with its 
share of the world's edibles, and the condition of the cultivators has con- 
tinued to improve from generation to generation, though it has not yet 
reached the grand results belonging to the great class. Nearly all of the 
farmers own their homesteads. 

In regard to its groves of ornamental trees and forests of timber, Japan 
has been liberally endowed. Owing to the great number of evergreen- 
trees, the woods are never denuded of their foliage. The matsii {Pinus 
sylvestris) finds a congenial soil and a hearty welcome by the inhabitants 
almost everywhere. Next to this, the slopes of the northland owe their 
perpetual mantle to' the red fir, which grows more sparsely toward the 
south. Valuable as timber, being much used for masts of junks, the larch 
is an esteemed favourite. The wax-tree is prized for its usefulness in af- 
fording a strong vegetable cement, while the towering camellia is highly 
esteemed for its seeds, which yield an oil desired for the purpose of light- 
ing houses and public places. Without the mulberry-tree, Japan would not 
be a silk-producing country. Whoever has traversed the highways through 
Hondo, lined for miles by twin rows of those noble patriarchs, will never 



JAPAN. 



69 



forget the Cryptomeria japonica. In the south the camphor -tree occupies 
a high place among the woods used in cabinet-work. 

Its bright green in summer, and happy brilliant colouring in autumn, 
relieving with beautiful effect the dark hues of the fir and pine, the 
maple is the royal queen of the great green woods of the Far East, and 
an appreciated rival of the chrysanthemum for the honours of state. Japan 
is preeminently the home of the maple. America boasts of some ten 




EVERGREENS AND WATER - WEEDS. 



species of this tree ; Europe something like twenty ; but here are almost 
four hundred distinct varieties. Think of a forest of four hundred species 
of maples decked in their gorgeous plumage of autumn ! 

Beginning with a deep green in the springtime. Mother Nature gradually 
invests the queen of her forests and groves with a robe of softer hue, until 
in the sunset of the seasons she decks her out in the brightest livery of 
fairy-land, as if she would impress upon her admirers the fact that in the 
shifting scenes she has not lost her vivacious spirit. The " frost queen 



70 



THE FAR EAST. 



maple," that species which dons with a cheerfulness more than human the 
glory of the dying days, is beyond description the happiest image of radi- 
ant life that exists in the realm of the forest world. There is, among 
the numerous varieties, one that bears star-shaped leaves, whose foliage, 
changing early to a brilliant crimson, contrasts beautifully with the deep 
green of her sisters. 

In ancient days tbe maples of Mount Tamuke were especially noted for 




AUTUMN FOLIAGE AT TAKI-NO-KWAWA. 



their beauty, and thus it was the custom each returning autumn to take 
figures woven of silk to the Shinto shrine on the mountain, as an offering 
of gratitude for the splendours of the forest at this season. This caused 
the great poet of that age, Michizane, who believed the gods ought to be 
satisfied with what nature had done for them, to exclaim : 

"'Tis hardlj^ for poor me 
To bring a beggar's gift, when 
Tam'keyama spreads 




KIRIFT^KI CASCADE, NIKKO. 



JAPAN. 71 

Miles of red maple damask 
Before the glad immortals." 

The Japanese express their inherent love and admiration for the maple 
in many ways, through maple picnics, and the introduction of maples in 
art and song ; and, more enduring than any of these, in their pictures and 
carvings, their artistic weavings in costly robes, and drawings on rich wine 
cups. But over these fair symbols of beauty and brilliancy is the halo of 
a light that is fading rather than the signification of endurance typified by 
the pine and bamboo. A few days of brilliant reign in her matchless 
foliage, and the maple sends her magnificent glory away on the wings of 
the fickle winds, — which is ever the rule with the gay and fragile. 

" The warp is hoar-frost and the woof is dew, 
Too frail, alas ! the warp and the woof to be : 
For scarce the woods their damask robes endue, 
When, torn and soiled, they flutter o'er the lea.'' 



CHAPTER YIII. 

NIKKO AND ITS TEMPLES. 

UNTIL within a few years the traveller to Nikko could get no nearer 
by rail than the little town of Utsunomiya, twenty-five miles from 
his destination, but the beauty and grandeur of this last stage of 
his journey more than made up for the added inconvenience of travel. 
The entire way, which is a broad, well-made road, as highways generally 
are in Japan, is bordered by twin rows of lofty cryptomerias, some of 
them rising to a height of two hundred feet, their stately bodies free 
of branches for more than half that distance. These grand old monarchs, 
excepting a few that have taken the place of the originals, were planted 
a long time ago by a nobleman to make this road a fitting avenue leading 
to the resting-place of the shoguns sleeping in their bronze tombs on the 
hills of the city of temples. 

Truly no more worthy monument could have been raised, and it is 
estimated that over a hundred thousand persons annually make their pious 
pilgrimages to the sacred shrines of Nikko. But the sublime effect has 
been marred by the modern methods of travel, and a band of pilgrims 
seeking their Mecca on an express-train lose their devout appearance. 
All over Japan the railroad is robbing it of much of its old-time grandeur. 

Nikko nestles at the foot of the Nikko-zan range of mountains, in one 
of the grandest valleys of picturesque Japan two thousand feet above the 
sea. It has a cool, salubrious climate in summer, so it is a popular resort 
at that time, as well as being the keeper of the proudest temples in the 
land. Among the many sacred treasures of this storehouse of nature, 
there is none so ancient or so noble as the venerable mountains clothed in 
their dense growth of forest. 

The city of temples is especially fortunate in its environments. If the 
mountains are the noblest in the northland, the waterfalls are the wildest 
in Japan. One of them leaps a sheer 350 feet into a basin of snow ; 
another is broken and twisted into a series of cascades, whose silvery 

72 



JAPAN. 



73 



beauty cannot be conveyed to paper. The ancient forests are hung with 
rare mosses, that give them an increased appearance of hoariness. The 
silence and solitariness of the village of Irimachi, hemmed in by the 
towering heights, possesses an intensity of loneliness beyond comparison. 
But everywhere the atmosphere is laden with the sweet perfumes of a 
thousand flowers, and birds of rare plumage and melodious songs 




STABLE, NIK 



enliven the scene. The temperature, too, has a delightful and invigor- 
ating tone, both healthful and hopeful. 

At Nikko is seen a shrine of the oldest religion in Japan — older than 
her history, in fact. Beside this emblem of the Shinto faith was erected 
by the saint Shodo Shonin, in 716, a temple of Buddha. The later religion 
was introduced into the empire from China, but its priests were wise 
enough not to attempt to replace the primitive Shinto by it, being content 
to unite the two. The ablest and most powerful follower of Buddha was, 
no doubt, that great warrior, lyeyasu, who was deified by the emperor as 
" the great incarnation of Buddha, the Light of the East." Upon his death 



74 



THE FAR EAST. 



this noted man was buried at Kunozan, in the southern country, and noble 
shrines were built to immortaUse his memory. But in time it was felt 
that sufficient honour had not been done the mighty man, and it was 
decided to remove his remains to a more fitting resting-place at Nikko. 

So in 1617, on the greatest day Nikko ever knew, his body was removed 
to her exalted protection, with such impressive ceremonies as only the 
rites of Buddha can afford. Japan has never seen such another burial ; it 
may never again see its like. The remains of the hero were borne up the 




VAbllAMUN GATi:, NIKKO. 



grand avenue lined by stately cryptomerias, to the mausoleum on the 
cedared mount, by the imperial envoy, made up of a long train of noble- 
men with two-sworded retainers, many gorgeously decked priests, and 
the living shogun. 

The most-sought approach to the temple-tombs of the illustrious dead 
is over the sacred bridge, which is a wooden structure lacquered a deep 
red, in vivid contrast to the sombre hue of the pines, and supported by 
stone piers. Gates are closed at either end, stopping all entrance, except 
when they are open once a year for the annual festival, and vast crowds 
pass over the sacred way. Leaving this bridge, the avenue lies under 



JAPAN. 75 

overhanging cryptomerias, and is terraced with stones worn smooth by 
many footsteps. 

Midway in the ascent is a small belfry, looking like a huge mushroom 
under its big sloping roof, covered with bronze plates, and surmounted by 
the crest of lyeyasu. A bronze bell, rung by means of a big log of wood 
placed at an angle so that, upon being pulled back by a rope, it will 
strike the deep-toned instrument as it rebounds, sends forth its clear 
resonant notes so as to be heard a long distance. At the head of the 
terraced ascent stands a massive symbol of Shintoism, a granite torii. This 
is twenty-seven feet and six inches in height, but looks dwarfed beside the 
handsome five-storied pagoda standing near by. The latter has a beautiful 
crest, its stories decreasing in size as they stand one above another. The 
eaves of the lower story are decorated by the painted carvings of the 
twelve Japanese signs of the zodiac : the rat, ox, tiger, hare, dragon, ser- 
pent, horse, goat, ape, cock, dog, and pig. 

Broad stone steps lead to the entrance, through the " Gate of the Two 
Kings," to the storehouses containing the precious relics of lyeyasu, and 
the numerous belongings of the temple. In the great courtyard, with its 
rows of stone lanterns, beside these two structures, with their large tiled 
roofs, is another and larger building, with painted carvings of elephants 
showing their hind legs turned the wrong way. These ornaments are the 
work of the famous left-handed artist, Hidari Jingoro, and are considered 
marvels of artistic taste. This elegant court is lighted, on special occasion, 
by 118 magnificent lanterns placed on massive stone bases, the gifts of 
noblemen in honour of the sleeping god lyeyasu. Kept in a small stable 
near by is a snow-white pony sacred to the use of the god. This building 
is ornamented by the carvings of three monkeys, supposed to represent the 
unique trinity of San-goku no saru, the trio that neither see, hear, nor 
speak any evil. This fact is symbolised by the attitudes of the monkeys, 
one having his paws over his eyes, the second covering his mouth, and the 
third his ears. Wherever one goes in Japan he will see these images of 
blind, dumb, and deaf monkeys. In this same court is a cistern fashioned 
out of solid rock, and holding holy water, which comes from a stream on 
the mountainside, known as the White Thread Cascade, as the water flows 
over the brink of the precipice in such a delicate layer of the silvery fluid 
as to look to be a part of the glistening stone. 



76 



THE FAR EAST. 



In the midst of his admiration of this scene the tourist hears the soft 
ting-a-ling of golden wind-bells under the eaves of the buildings, as they 
are gently swayed to and fro by the breeze. 

At the head of another flight of steps the visitor comes upon a second 
court, filled with wonder-works of Japanese skill, and gifts from other 
countries. Among these last are a bronze candelabrum, that belonged 
years ago to a king of Loochoo ; a huge candlestick sent from Holland, 




MONKEY CARVED STABLE, NIKKO. 



and a strange bell which was once the pride of a Corean king. These 
gifts came from those kingdoms when they were considered as vassals of 
Japan. 

Another flight of steps ascended, and the visitor pauses before the Yo 
Mei gate, its two stories decorated with remarkable carvings of the com- 
mon and the unusual in artistic work. Engraved in intricate tracings of 
marvelous cunning and grotesque invention are groups of happy children, 
wise-looking Chinese sages, heads of weird dragons, and beasts that live 



JAPAN. 



77 



only in the mythology of a picturesque people. On either side are clois- 
ters prodigal of their carvings of birds and flowers. 

As the ponderous gate swings ajar we are ushered into a courtyard con- 
taining several buildings, one of which was reserved in ancient times for 
the kagura. or sacred dance, which was performed by priestesses in wide- 
flowing silken trousers, an overdress of gauzy texture, and a wreath of 
artificial flowers, while they held in their hands tiny bells, that gave forth 
soft, bewitching music. They SAvirled and postured in absurd positions, 





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TEMPLE AT XI KK 



making ridiculous passes with their fans before amused priests. Near the 
centre of the court is an enclosure holding the chapel, which contains that 
universal emblem of Shintoism, the golden goliei, attached to a long wand, 
and a Shinto mirror on a table lacquered a deep black. Save the decora- 
tions of bronze figures on the walls and ceilings, carvings and frescoes in 
gold and black lacquer, there are no ornaments here. But the dimness of 
the light, the coolness of the atmosphere, and the deep solemnity that per- 
vades the sacred j^i'ecinct, with its impressive mementos of the days of 
old, linger long with the beholder. 

There is another way leading to this court, through an old gate bearing 



78 THE FAR EAST. 

over its top the ancient carving of a sleeping cat, denoting the tireless 
sentry, and the work of the left-handed artist already mentioned. This 
path leads up 220 moss-grown steps to that spot of greatest sanctity, the 
tomb of Japan' s greatest ruler. In fact, all these preludes of courts, stone 
stairways, massive gates, and displays of decorations have been only the 
entrance to the mausoleum. 

Situated within an enclosure of lofty walls surmounted with a balustrade, 
and sheltered by stately old cryptomerias, the tomb itself is unadorned, 
and stands an impressive and fitting resting-place of the mighty shogun. 
It is constructed of huge blocks of stone, crested with an urn of gold, 
silver, and copper-bronze raised in the form of a pagoda. A vase of bronze 
filled with lotus flowers and leaves in brass, a bronze tortoise supporting a 
stork, an ornament typifying the length of the days, and an incense burner 
of the same metal, all stand on a table of stone in front of the tomb. 
Situated on this noble height under the deathless shade of the pines, 
and behind the picturesque temples reared in his honour, the great 
monarch sleeps amid surroundings in keeping with his illustrious record. 
Truly, in no other land is fame more lasting, or honour more highly 
esteemed. 

Scarcely inferior to this sublime mausoleum is the monument raised to 
the memory of his grandson, lyemitsu. This is reached by an avenue 
turning from the approach to the other. In this direction, courtyards and 
flights of stone steps, gold and bronze images, grotesque carvings, temples 
to the Shinto faith, the tomb of Yoritomo, the shrewd, ambitious, and un- 
scrupulous founder of the shogunate, niches filled with figures of mytho- 
logical gods and goddesses, among which we note those ridiculous monsters 
with prodigious display of teeth that are supposed to rule the wind and 
thunder, gates that show both art and skill in the building, an oratory as 
impressive as that of lyeyasu, and with more of ornamentation ; all this, 
and many other beauties, which to describe would call into use every 
synonomous adjective in the English language belonging to the class mag- 
nificent, until we stand in our bare feet and with bowed head in the 
tomb of this noted man. 

The two temples and their environments have interests that are different, 
as the first has, in comparatively late years, been shorn of its profuse 
adornments and rededicated to the Shinto gods, whose surroundings are 



Three Little Maids 



JAPAN. 



79 



always of the simplest kind ; while the latter remains in Buddhist hands, 
and retains the ornate glory of this religion. Its storehouses are filled 
with works of art and rare paintings, which no pen can adequately 
describe. The beauty, grandeur, and sublimity of these famous shrines of 
Nikko must be seen to be appreciated. Art and Nature seem to have 
joined hands in outdoing themselves. India, famous for her sacred shrines, 
has nothing to com- 
pare with them. 
Even when the 
Taj Mahal, that 
" temple-tomb of 
Asia," has been 
placed in compari- 
son with these seen 
at Nikko, the be- 
holder finds all the 
awe and wonder of 
the other, placed 
amid its solemn 
shadows, revivified 
with intensified in- 
terest, until he feels 
that it was here, in 
the mountains of 
the north, art began 
and temples had 
their 



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SACKED POST AT NIKKO. 



Leaving these 
splendid sepulchres of the founder of the Tokugawa dynasty, and his 
quite as illustrious grandson, in the midst of stately mountains, clothed in 
ancient forests, and invested in storied mysteries of the ages, we soon 
reach that flashing stream Daiya gawa, plunging headlong down the pre- 
cipitous descent in a frantic race to gain the lowlands, where it is spanned 
by the Mi Hasi, or sacred bridge, built in 1638 A. D., at a spot where leg- 
end says was made the first pilgrimage to the mountains of the saint 
Shodo Shonin. A lesser temple is raised by the wayside, dedicated to the 



80 



THE FAR EAST. 



goddess of rice, Inari, and bearing the figure of the fox, which is the per- 
sonification of this deity. 

Nikko puts on her best livery at the festival of lyeyasu, and the shrines 
to this hero are then seen to the best advantage. But the tourist has not 
seen it all until he has been present at one of the annual pilgrimages to 
the mountain shrines. 

The day is perfect. Nikko has more perfect days, it would seem, than 
any other spot in Japan. The grand avenue is provided with refreshments 




KANAYA HOTEL AT NIKKO. 



for the coming multitude, and a pine, consecrated to propitiate the evil 
spirits, is dragged furiously up the terraced path. Eager, excited people 
rush after it, plucking branch after branch from the tree as charms against 
evils, until it is bare of leaf and branch. During this performance a con- 
tinual outcry of voices from a hundred throats rings up and down the val- 
ley erstwhile so heavy with the silence. Then the broad gate of the sacred 
Red Bridge is flung open, and the anxious, travel-worn pilgrims move 
solemnly forward on their march to the holy temples. Sanctimonious 
priests in robes of gold brocade or silk chasubles and white cassocks, and 
mounted on ponies selected with religious veneration for this pious occa- 



JAPAN. 81 

sion, are followed by their train of devoted parishioners, clothed in brigh'* 
yellow gowns, and holding on long poles over their heads huge fans. 
Behind these marches a long train of warriors, made conspicuous by their 
ancient trappings and arms of olden styles. Next in this strange proces- 
sion walk, in double file, men and boys, with masks over their faces and all 
wearing quaint costumes of other days donned for this especial scene. The 
last squad wave banners or temple flags of queer device over their heads, 
or carry live birds or monkeys. In the rear, attired in skins of wild 
beasts, and to make the imitation more startling, men creep upon their 
hands and knees, following two and two abreast. Besides these singular 
bodies of people, at intervals along the marching column zealous adherents 
of the faith draw sacred cars on wooden wheels, with temple-shaped roofs 
and bodies of dark lacquer, valances of rare needlework, and rich draperies 
of red and yellow silk. The entire scene is enlivened, if not rendered more 
enjoyable, by all sorts of instruments, musical and otherwise, sending forth 
their medley of sounds. The procession is at least a mile in length, while 
the avenue is fairly deluged by a flood of spectators who have come from 
all parts of the country — some hundreds of miles — to witness this famous 
festival. 

One day is deemed suflicient for the religious celebration, in which there 
is an amazing mixture of the profane and divine influences. At eventide 
the whole affair is closed with an extensive illumination of the temples 
and surroundings for a long distance. Lights from gay-coloured paper 
lanterns, swaying from every building and gateway, from the trees, the 
pagoda, the tomb, dazzle the beholders of the night scene. Lanterns of 
bronze and stone lend their sparkling blazes from courts and avenues, 
while smaller lanterns of paper, carried by the surging multitude, look 
like so many fireflies dodging hither and thither. The wind-bells, swayed 
gently by the mellow evening air, send forth their tremulous notes with 
sweet cadence, while the deeper tones of the bronze bell float away in the 
far, misty distance. The crowd finally, with backward glances, moves 
leisurely down the avenue whence it had ascended in the earlier hours, 
until the silence and loneliness of yesterday fall upon the scene. 

But the mixed train of prayerful priests and pious pilgrims, of devout 
people and curious sightseers, moving sublimely along the noble avenue 
consecrated to the gods of two religions, has come and gone and returned 



82 THE FAR EAST. 

again with autumnal regularity for over a thousand years, and who would 
gaze upon its like again has only to come to Nikko at its next annual 
matsuri. He may not see the same individuals making up the singular 
array of marching columns, neither will the forests have on the same 
vestments as before ; but the solemn mien of the pine, and brilliant colour- 
ing of the maple still remain unchanged, while the same picturesque 
pageantry of worshippers will pass before the eye. It may be that Japan, 
in its new light of progress, has little use for these relics of romantic 
paganism, but she will hold upon them with ancestral veneration for many 
years to come. 



CHAPTER IX. 

NATIVES OF THE GREEN WOODS. 

NIKKO'S attractions do not end with the temples described, by any 
means. There are other shrines as full of historic interest if not 
of religious importance, and one never tires of visiting these holy 
retreats embodying so happily the combined fascinations of art and nature 
and religion, romantic valleys and sparkling cascades, hillsides clothed in 
their variegated coats of bright and dark foliage, with vistas of plains in 
the distance. 

Near the hotel, and amid surroundings that have been used at some time 
as the burial-grounds of an older generation, stands the temple of Jokoji. 
A stone image of Koyasu-Jizo, the god of children, is found at this place. 
To this, come the mothers, with offerings and prayers for his conciliation 
and influence to cure their children of their ills, or if well, to guard them 
from misfortune. This idol is nearly six feet in height, and continually 
decked with red and white linen, that anxious mothers have placed upon it 
for the effect it is believed to have upon their loved ones. 

As we explore these sacred precincts about Nikko we are continually 
meeting with some god or goddess consecrated to some worldly object, and 
the central figure of some temple or shrine. No. spot is so isolated or in- 
accessible that it does not have such an attraction. A hideous idol may 
stand watch in a snake garden ; a goddess of light may throw her imagi-' 
nary influence for good over some temple, or the god of darkness crouch 
behind a more dreaded shrine. A memento of Shintoism, or reminder of 
the rites of Buddha, may be seen ; every sacred object having its devotees, 
and the roads leading to them lined at all times with pious pilgrims wend- 
ing their way hither. These solemn scenes are made brighter by occasional 
vistas of one of the landscape-gardens which seem a part of Japan. 

On the west of the village, nestling amid the hills, is a corner cut from 
paradise, and dropped here by a generous Giver. It is famous for contain- 
ing hundreds of images sacred to the memory of that powerful deity that 

83 



84 



THE FAR EAST. 



once dwelt here, Amida. These time-worn, moss-grown figures, cut 
roughly from blocks of stone, are placed in a long row^ beside the pathway 
leading into the sacred vale. A legend the devout Buddhist believes to 
this day says that these images cannot be counted twice alike, except 
under the divine incantation of a faithful priest. Its rocky bed lying be- 
tween two massive walls of mighty rocks, the river of the gods sweeps 
wildly and triumphantly through the narrow valley. 

Among the other places sought by tourist and pilgrim, are Rainbow 



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A BUDDHIST SHRINE. 



Falls, where all the hues of heaven and earth blend in a harmonious colour- 
ing of water and mist ; and Pillow Cascade, a charming little stream that 
takes an unexpected leap of sixty feet over the brink of a rocky wall, 
carpeted wdth soft moss and covered with ferns, to quickly recover its 
equilibrium at the base and hie away singing as merrily as ever. Wild 
azaleas lend their beauty to the scene, pine and bamboo their dignity 
and solemnity, while the song of birds from the maples awakens the 
solitude. 

With a climate similar to that of New England, it is natural we should 
look for about the same denizens of the green woods. The result is not a 



JAPAN. 



85 



disappointment. Koaming to-day the wilds of Japan are the deer, fox, 
badger^ weasel, and smaller animals of the last type. In the north is to 
be found the bear, while the wild boar and the monkey live in the moun- 
tain ranges of the central and southern provinces. 

In this group of natives of the woods the fox is ranked at the head by 
the human family, 
and he enjoys a 
sort of charmed life 
among the agricul- 
tural people, as the 
superstitious farm- 
ers believe he is the 
reincarnation of 
that sacred deity of 
the pastoral pur- 
suits, Inari. The 
veneration shown 
this god is ex- 
pressed on many a 
hillside by a ver- 
milion -coloured 
shrine, where the 
farming class are 
wont to congregate 
to render homage 
to their patron di- 
vinity. In this 
manner the fox has 
not only come to be 

looked upon with respect, if not fear, but he figures in nearly all of the 
fairy tales of Japanese folk-lore. He is often associated with the bad- 
ger, which is considered an uncanny creature, and is avoided as much as 
possible by all except those who hunt him for the purpose of killing him. 

Deer of a small species are found plentifully, and, in the vicinity of the 
consecrated grounds of the regis of the Buddhist religion, he roams at will, 
unfearing and unharmed, amid the temples or along the village streets.' 




VIEW OF MATSUSHIMA. 



86 



THE FAR EAST. 



But away from the special protection of these sacred places, in the fastness 
of mountain and valley, he is hunted as in other countries, while his meat 
is esteemed as a delicacy. 

The bear, among the Ainos of the north, and the wild boar in the Pyre- 
nees of the south, are alike hunted and considered ugly customers when 
brought to bay, as many a battle-scarred hunter will attest. The flesh of 
either is not looked upon with favour. In fact, the meat of the hog has 
been considered, until within twenty years, with more than Jewish hatred, 
as unclean. Of late, however, it has become a part of the national diet, 
along with beef. 

Of the domesticated animals, the horse ranks easily at the head, though 
he is of a small breed and has never been put to severe work. There are 
the ox, cow, pig, dog, and cat, the sheep being conspicuous by its absence. 
The last do not thrive anywhere in Japan, the rugged kaya grass and the 
stout bamboo, upon which they will persist in feeding, proving poison to 
them. The native horse, if small, is hardy and fleet of foot, and capable 
of great powers of endurance. Horses are inclined, however, to be vicious, 
and are not trained to work except as racers and jumpers. Oxen and cows 
are employed in agricultural pursuits in most parts of the islands, but 
milk is not generally considered as an article of food. 

Goats, in some localities, are quite common, while there are two species 
of dogs which do not belong to any kind that we have, though as a lap- 
dog one of them has become quite common here. The other is called the 
inu, and more nearly resembles the wolf than any animal we know. It is 
quite easily domesticated. Cats are without number, — and also without 
tails, except in a few cases, when they are of great length. Rats are 
numerous, and looked upon with something of favour. The rat is one of 
the Japanese signs of the zodiac. 

Japanese art has led us to expect much of her bird life, and naturally 
we look first for the stork, so familiar to us all, through the artist and the 
decorator, as the king of the feathered tribe. In many respects we are 
disappointed. The stork, tsitru {Grus leucau chen), attains a height of 
nearly six feet when erect, and approaches the size of the ostrich. It has 
a white, glistening body, with ebony wings and tail-feathers, and head 
conspicuously marked with a spot of crimson. Appropriately seeking the 
black, sinuous pines that overhang the old castle walls, and shores of the 



JAPAN. 



87 



reedy ponds in the ancient parks, circling around the gnarled arms of 
the dark evergreeen, or posing in graceful and stately manner amid the 
grottoes and lakelets of these olden pleasure-grounds, if he does not meet 
the expectations of the foreigner, he richly deserves the admiration the 
Eastern artist so loves to picture. 

A companion to the stork, in size if not in public favour, is the go-i-sagi, 
or heron of " noble rank." Then there is the snowy heron of the rice- 




TAME DEER, NAKA. 



fields, more numerous than desirable. There are several other varieties of 
this kind of bird, but of lesser importance. 

Another of the feathered creatures that stands high in popular opinion 
is the mandarin duck, also common in China. These ducks have a mag- 
nificent plumage of a rich colouring, and, shyly seeking the secluded waters 
of some isolated lakelet or stream, are worthy of the unstinted praise be- 
stowed upon them. This love is strengthened by the belief that when one 
of a pair dies, the other remains without a mate the rest of its life, a 
striking example of conjugal fidelity. 

A bird of most beautiful plumage and gorgeous tints is that native of 



88 



THE FAR EAST. 



Japan, the copper pheasant, very often found in the southern and central 
islands. Teal, mallards, widgeon, woodcock, snipe, and quail, are all to be 
found abundantly in the marshes and unfrequented bodies of water. 

A Japanese spring would not be spring without its swallow, which 
comes and goes here as it does elsewhere in the world, never failing to 
make its flight to and fro as unvaryingly as the seasons. But here it builds 
its mud house inside the roof instead of under the eaves, as it does in New 




^:ym 



A PUBLIC PLEASURE RESORT, KAXAZAWA. 



England. That dusky representative of every zone, the raven, is seen in 
this clime, the same bold, saucy, cunning mischief-maker. 

Among the sweet singers of the Land of the Sunrise is the skylark, 
whose notes in Japanese are just as melodious as in English. Here are 
also the cuckoo, which for some reason has fallen into ill-repute, linnets 
and finches, starlings, sparrows and sparrow-hawko, and owls with no 
more of cheerfulness in a Japanese wood than in a New England swamp. 

The denizens of the farmyard are the same as in New England, and 



JAPAN. 89 

among the fowls bred for eggs and table are the Black Spanish, Plymouth 
Rocks, Dorkmgs, Cochin Chinas, the common duck and goose, with the 
turkey, or " bird of seven faces," as they call the last. 

From early times fishing has been a common pursuit, and Japan is 
extremely fortunate in the number and variety of her finny tribe. Every 
kind of fish known in America, and many that are strangers with us, 
appear in the menus of Japan. The highest bidder for public favour is 
that bright pink roach of immense size, called the ta% which is ever to be 
found at a well-devised banquet, either baked, boiled, or roasted, unless 
it is preferred raw. Fish is often served without being cooked. It is the 
rule, rather than the exception, to take fish to the market alive. This is 
done by carrying them in shallow buckets, fitted with lids, and venders 
of fish go from house to house with their stock still alive. It must not be 
supposed that this practice is confined to the thickly settled districts, for far 
back in the mountains these fish-peddlers are to be seen going about from 
hamlet to hamlet. As has already been said, fish is generally eaten, while 
beef and pork are only sparingly partaken of. Naturally those fish which 
are the most rare bring the highest price in the markets. 

Besides these creatures of mortal life that people the green woods now, 
the forests were formerly, according to legend and tradition, the home of 
many strange races of beings, that still live in the wonder tales of Japan. 
Our little wiry-framed guide, whose tongue, like his limbs, never seems to 
tire, is pleased to tell us one of these. 

Many years ago, while these woods were yet young and the mosses of 
mountains had not given them their patriarchal appearance, elves lived 
in these forests, and held sway over other forms of life. They had 
bodies like men, but having been hatched from the eggs of the hawk, 
had heads like that bird, and two powerful claws on their hairy hands 
and feet. In early life they had wings and feathers over their bodies, but 
these fell away as they grew older, until they donned the garb of men, 
and stalked about with all the majesty of kings, declaring that they were 
lords of the forest. Thus when a person becomes vain and frivolous it is 
said of him, " he has become a Tengu,'' which was the name given this 
elfish race of the mountains by the sons of men. 

The chief of the strange creatures living in the fastnesses of Oyama, 
half man and half elf, was the Dai-Tengu, who was prouder and more 



90 



THE FAR EAST. 



vainglorious than any of his followers. He had a long gray beard and 
moustaches, and he seldom spoke, but continually waved a fan of seven 
gay feathers, and looked very wise whenever he was addressed. Over his 
left shoulder he carried in a sling a formidable axe, and this, with his 
fierce, sombre looks, gave him the reputation of being extremely cruel. 

These Tengus were fond of passing away their time, which must some 
days have hung heavily on their hands, in wild, fanciful games, such as 
leapfrog over steep precipices, fencing with their long, pointed noses, or by 




A COBBLER. 



balancing themselves on the tops of high trees and in building bridges in 
mid-air by locking their noses together, to make their children walk over 
the narrow way, or spring from one span to another. 

Once it so happened that the son of a great warrior at the court in 
Kyoto, named Sakato, fell into the power and teachings of these wild 
denizens of the green woods of Mount Oyama. His father had fought 
the good fight for his chief, and, being defeated, was obliged to flee to 
the fastness of the forest with his dearly beloved wife. He soon died 
of a broken heart, but she lived to give birth to a son, whom she named 
Kintaro, the Golden Boy, because he had such bright hair. Though she 



JAPAN. 



91 



was grieved to think of the loss of her noble husband, and her pleasant 
home that she had been obliged to desert, tlie mother grew to be happy 
in the company of her sturdy little boy. 

The wild beasts of the forest were her enemies, which she feared much 
at first ; but as Kintaro lay on his bed of ferns he made friends of the 
birds, while they gathered in the tree-tops and sang him to sleep day 
after day. Their presence telling the wild animals that no human being 




tea-housp: WOMAX ' IX jixuikisha. 



could be around the place, they served as guardians as well as soothing 
him to rest. So his mother did not fear to leave him alone with the birds 
for hours at a time, while she picked berries or obtained vegetables for 
food. 

In this way Kintaro grew and played in the companionship of the 
birds. By and by, as he became larger, these, having communication with 
the other creatures of the forest, one day invited a bear and a stag to 
see him. These were so pleased with the little fellow that they began 
to come regularly to see him, and Kintaro soon learned to spring on the 



92 THE FAR EAST. 

back of the stag, that would carry him about in the woods. At first his 
mother was frightened at this, but as some of the birds promised to watch 
over him, she became reconciled to his trips, which grew longer and 
longer. 

On one of these journeys through the wildwood, up and down mountain- 
sides, and over dizzy heights, the stag came to a leafy spot in the forest, 
where rippling water made sweet music the day long, and succulent grass 
tempted the strange steed to stop and get his dinner. Kintaro soon saw 
with amazement the most elfish creatures he had ever known, for he had 
been brought to the home of the Tengus. They were playing at rolling 
small stones across a bridge made by putting their noses together, but 
instantly stopped at sight of the newcomer. Quickly encircling the 
Golden Boy, they began to sing a musical song, which expressed pleasure 
at seeing him. 

Fortunately for Kintaro, he had been taught by the birds never to be 
deceitful, and his mother had always made him acknowledge great love for 
all the creatures of the forest. The stag told this to the Tengus, and they 
received him with unbounded delight. The oldest and wisest of them, 
who never went around without a book in his hand, began to teach the 
boy all that he knew of birds, beasts, nature, and humanity. He taught 
him the languages of all the denizens of the woods, until Kintaro could 
talk with them all, holding conversation with everything that flew in the 
air, walked on the earth, or swam in the water. When he had tired of 
his lessons, the stag took Kintaro home, and his mother was told of the 
many wonderful things he had seen and learned. From that day he was 
known as the Prince of the Forest. 

After that Kintaro looked more anxiously than ever for the coming of 
the stag, and winding his arms around the noble creature's neck, he would 
be borne swiftly away to the court of the elves in the distant green woods. 
Here, as he grew wiser from the teachings of the Tengus, the young 
prince delighted to hold court with the innumerable inhabitants of the for- 
est. At the call of the Tengu chief, every living creature, would quickly 
appear : the fox, the badger, wolf and bear, the deer and dog, the marten, 
squirrel, and many others too numerous to name. Nor were the birds, 
whether great or small, missing. The hawk and the eagle, leaving their 
lofty perches, the crane and heron, sweeping from over the plain, the 



JAPAN. 



93 



stork and wild duck, from the ancient grove of black pines; in fact, all 
of the feathered friends alighted on the cedar branches to listen to the 
tales of the youthful prince they loved so well. 

But the sun does not always shine, and there came a day when Kintaro 
found none to attend his court under the cedars. While at play with 
some of the Tengus he had got impatient at their inattention to the game, 
when he spoke angrily to them. They were the first angry words he had 
ever spoken, - — except possibly to his mother, and a mother forgives 




FOLDIXG CLOTHES. 



easily, — and the little Tengus flew up to their nests in the lofty pines. 
Angered still more at this, Kintaro shook the trees, and he proved so 
strong that the nests of the Tengus we're shaken from their supports and 
fell to the ground. 

This so incensed the mothers of the injured elves that they banished 
the prince from their courtyard, and he was forced to start home on foot, 
with a feeling of sadness at his heart he had never known before. He 
had not gone far before he was reminded of his fallen estate by the attack 
of a bear, which threatened to kill him. But the little prince of the forest 



94 



THE FAR EAST. 



was plucky, and lie wrestled with tlie big bear until he was nearly tired 
out. He was thinking what his mother would do, in case he never 
returned home, when a good and brave man came along. He quickly 
killed the bear, and took Kintaro in his arms, all bleeding and torn as he 
was. Kintaro soon told the stranger who he was, and how his father had 
fought in a lost cause and been exiled to the woods, to die there. There- 
upon the man wept, and held him closer than before in his arms, saying 
that he had been a soldier with his father, that at last the tide of battle 




WASHING 



had turned in their favour, and that Sakato and his wife were free to 
return to their home. 

With what joy, tinged with sadness over his father's fate, Kintaro led 
the messenger to his mother may be imagined. She listened to the story 
with gladness for the sake of her son, and preparations were begun for 
the journey home. In the midst of this, the Tengus, who had repented 
of their hasty condemnation of the boy that they loved so well, came and 
begged of him not to leave them, but to be their prince always. Their 
pleadings did not avail, and finding that he was really going away, 
the Tengus summoned all the creatures of the forest to be present at his 



JAPAN. 95 

departure. So many tears were shed on that occasion that a stream ran 
to the sea, and unlike other rivers that dry their founts in summer-time, 
this never becomes dry. And the story-teller stops here, except to add 
that Kintaro became a great warrior, who ever remembered and kept 
the precepts taught him by the elves of Oyama while he reigned as 
Prince of the Forest. 



CHAPTER X. 

LAKES OF THE HIGHLANDS. 

FEW sightseers visit Nikko without making an excursion farther 
up the mountains to those lakes of the highlands, Chuzenji and 
Yumoto. This trip is made best in one of those basket-chairs called 
Tcago, which is borne on the shoulders of two or four carriers, according 
to the condition of the route and size of the occupant. Even this is not a 
comfortable way of riding, on account of the cramped position the occu- 
pant has to maintain, but where the roads are steep and rough it is better 
than the jinrikisha. If the tourist is strong of limb and not afraid of 
exercising his powers of locomotion, he will be inclined to walk, but this 
mode of travelling, it must be confessed, is not in good favour in Japan. 
However, we are free to confess that, used to mountain climbing and feats 
of pedestrianism, we let tongues say what they might, and " took to our 
heels." This is nature's way, and one cannot improve upon it if he 
wishes to reap his full reward for his time spent in the rural districts of 
any country. We may add, however, without fear of contradiction, that 
the visitors to this region, no matter how they make the trip, are never 
disappointed by the grandeur and magnificence of the scenery unfolded 
to the gaze. 

Some of the party go on horseback as far as the hamlet of Uma-gae-shi, 
which means " horse-send-back," as this is as far as these sure-footed 
equines can go. From this point, those of the men who can, climb the 
precipitous pathway on foot, while the others and the women are carried 
in the yama-kago, or mountain-chair. The ascent is slow, until, at last, 
effort is rewarded by the grand sight of the lake of the mountains in its 
peerless setting of rock and forest. 

We are now 4,375 feet above sea level, and surrounded by cloud-capped 
mountains, clothed in light shades of the hard woods at their base and 
the darker tints of the pine above. Lake Chuzenji is a popular summer 
resort, and its shores are dotted with the tea-houses occupied during the 

96 



JAPAN. 97 

warm period of the year and deserted through the winter. A grove of 
pines, festooned with traihng mosses, stands out boldly on one of the 
distant points of land, while from this rises the sheer, majestic form of 
Nantai-zan, the sacred mountain. This is over eight thousand feet in 
height, and on its summit the wind god is supposed to have his dwelling. 
This brings hither each season a great number of pilgrims with no other 
errand than to propitiate with appropriate tributes this fickle deity, that 




KE8TING KAGO. 



he may remain in good humour until the autumn harvests have been 
safely stored. On the sides, broken ranges of hills, covered with dense 
growths of forest, fringe the crystal waters with a border of dark hue. 

Crossing the lake in a boat, catching many a glimpse of the finny in- 
habitants of the waters as we pass along, we are soon wending our way 
under an archway of grape-vines, syringa, azaleas, and rank bamboo 
grass, overtopped with elms, chestnuts, and maples, until we finally halt 
at Ryuzu-ga taki, or Dragon's Head Cascade, where dancing waters make 



98 THE FAR EAST. 

merry the livelong day in the midst of their lonely surroundings. Leav- 
ing this spot with an affectionate backward glance, we plunge into the 
deeper w^oods. The flowers and the vines grow scarcer and more puny, 
we outstrip the maple with regret, while the forest grows denser and 
darker. Up, up, up, we continue to climb, higher and higher, until even 
the hardy oak no longer greets us, and we advance under gnarled and 
haggard pines, that make noonday dark with their shadows. 

We are wondering if we had not better turn back, when, without any 
warning, we suddenly find ourselves looking down upon a scene which, for 
the deep silence and solemnity that hangs over it, fairly takes away our 
breath. There are still lofty peaks hanging over us with their grim, awe- 
inspiring fronts, but it is not that which makes the situation so im- 
pressive and sublime. We experience that sensation which accompanies 
every spot which seems to lack room. The bright body of water at our 
feet, made dark by its surroundings, seems compressed into half the space 
it needs ; but we soon get used to this, and look to our guide for explana- 
tion. 

He tells us this is the upper of the highland lakes, famous Yumoto, of 
which we have been hearing ever since we landed at Yokohama. It has 
become thus noted as a resort for victims of rheumatism, who fancy they 
can find here a balm for their sufferings in the numerous sulphur springs 
in this vicinity. A hamlet of inns and tea-houses finds scanty standing- 
room on the rim of the lake. At this place are found the two extremes of 
temperature, — the excessive heat of summer and the extreme cold of win- 
ter. Very beautiful Yumoto looks under the benign influences of sum- 
mer, and here gay life makes one forget his aches and pains if its warm 
fountains do not. In the public places of Japan the promiscuous bathing 
of the sexes is generally forbidden, but here the force of the law is lost, 
and the old-time custom prevails. But Yumoto's reign each year is brief. 
A short season of health-seeking and pleasure-finding, and at the warning 
of the frost a coarse matting is thrown over the dwellings, the people hie 
away to their respective homes, while Yumoto is left to languish during 
the long winter in its crystal prison, covered with ten feet of snow. 

The return to Nikko is made over the site of one of the famous battle- 
grounds of ancient days, and we reach the city of temples glad we made 
this trip to the mountains, — thrice glad it is done. We came to Nikko 



JAPAN. 



99 



from Utsu-no-miya behind a wheezy iron horse at the rate of from twelve 
to fifteen miles an hour. But in doing that we missed largely the beauties 
of the sacred avenue, so we decide to hire a jinrikisha to get back, and the 
result is most satisfactory. Performing this stage of our journey, we go 
by rail to Oyama, and thence take a westerly course through the great 
wilderness of mountains and valleys which makes this region " the Switz- 
erland of Japan." Here we find the people living nearer to nature and 



^m,^-m. 




f^'^^ 




^- -* ■•>?^^ 




Jt '''::««u 




'^ .* LUB . ..^■^--i ■■ 


^^^^^ , ^::,'0^^%^.^ 






|p •'-^— *«^"**^ ''^^ "■ 1 











YUMOTO. 



nature's god, where there is less of foreign and more of the aboriginal 
influence. The plains along this road, as far as the foothills of Asamais, 
are producers of two great staples, rice and mulberry. Large factories, 
where silk is spun from cocoons, are to be seen. The food for the silk- 
worms is obtained by planting a stem from the parent mulberry-tree, and 
when this has grown to full leafage, the leaves are plucked or else the 
whole branch is placed in a basket where the worms can feed upon them. 
Rice is cut by the sickle, as grain was harvested in this country before 



100 



THE FAR EAST. 



the invention of the reaping-machine. A labourer follows the reaper to 
gather the straw. The grain is separated from its stalk by means of a 
steel blade with a row of teeth along the upper edge. A bunch of straw is 
held in one hand, while the other pulls the heads over this saw-like instru- 
ment, and the rice falls on a cloth spread to catch it. The hulling process 
is even slower and more primitive. The rice, after being put in its basin 




HUSKING RICE. 



of stone, is beaten from its covering by the weight of a lever falling into 
the receptacle. 

The houses along this route are made of wood, except an occasional 
stone dwelling, and the roofs are shingled, tiled, or thatched. Outside the 
large cities the means for keeping warm during the cold periods are primi- 
tive in the extreme. The principal resort is for the sufferer to put on 
more clothes. The only artificial way of affording heat is the hihashi, 
the charcoal brazier, a wooden box filled with ashes, on the top of which is 
placed a layer of red-hot charcoal. Around this, muffled in their extra 
clothing, the family huddle and shiver, for the Japanese are very suscepti- 
ble to the low temperature. Houses are lighted in the mountain districts 
by a wick floating in a cup of cocoanut-oil, placed in a paper lantern, or 



JAPAN. 101 

by a candle of vegetable wax, stuck in a candlestick of grotesque pat- 
tern. 

In the amphitheatre of the northern mountains the tourist suddenly and 
unexpectedly comes upon a tea-growing province, where he had least 
expected to find it. But the plant raised here is not considered of a very 
good quality, and it is cured in the simplest manner possible by being dried 
in the sun. It is not offered for the foreign market, but finds a ready 
demand from home consumers. It goes without saying that Japan is 
greatly interested in tea-growing, and great attention is given that crop, 
both in raising and curing, though only a small percentage is sent abroad. 
The soil best adapted to the crop is that composed of disintegrated granite, 
which quickly partakes of moisture and is easily drained. Green tea with- 
out milk or sweetening is the universal beverage, and the stranger accepts 
this the more willingly as the water of Japan, before it is boiled, is less fit 
to drink than that of almost any other country. 

This route of travel crosses the backbone of Japan, where two engines 
are required to draw the coaches up an incline of one foot to each fifteen 
feet of progress from Yokogawa to Karuisawa through Usui Pass. In a 
short distance twenty-five tunnels are threaded, having an entire length of 
about three miles. These tunnels are built of stone or brick. 

At the summit, four thousand feet above the sea, is to be found a typical 
Japanese inn, where the traveller stopping for a brief rest is invariably 
offered a small tray, called hon, containing a teapot, teacups, a caddy of 
hot water, and a small charcoal fire with which to light the pipe or 
cigarette. A charge of ten sen is made. A tea-house contains one large 
room, which can be divided into several smaller ones by simply drawing 
sliding screens. These apartments are wholly unfurnished during the day. 
At nightfall the bed is made by first sprinkling a generous amount of flea 
powder over the straw mat laid on the smooth floor. A mattress about four 
inches thick is then laid down. Over this spotless sheets are spread, and 
over them down quilts, the number gauged by the temperature of the 
weather. A mosquito netting is then hung over the couch, and a paper 
lantern, with a dim light burning from a wick floating in oil, placed near 
the head. To this is added, for the women, a wooden head-rest, so they 
will not disarrange their hair. This is a typical Japanese bed, without a 
single article of furniture in the apartment, and separated from that- 



102 THE FAR EAST. 

adjoining by a screen wall, which is moved back against the outer wall of 
the building when the sleeper arises in the morning. 

A large tub is convenient, where all of both sexes bathe promiscuously 
without any feeling of shame. The Japanese live more by washing than 
eating ; they are a cleanly people, but, as a race, subject to skin diseases. 
This may be due to exposure, and again disease may be spread by con- 
tagion, from their habit of public washing. A Japanese, upon reaching an 
inn where he intends to stop any length of time, doffs his heavy clothing, 
and puts on a light kimono girthed about with a silken sash. This habit 
not only makes him comfortable, but puts him into good harmony with his 
surroundings. 




FUJIYAMA. 



CHAPTER XI. 



IN THE WILDS. 



MANY stop over night at this lofty station to witness the glory of 
the sunrise. The reward is ample for loss of time or any incon- 
venience the delay may have caused, for nowhere in the Land of 
Sunrise is the day ushered in with greater beauty or magnificence. The 
surroundings are such as one might picture for the stepping-stones of the 
awakening god. as he climbs from his couch in the deep to the rosy heights 
of morning. In the midst of these colossal benches rests that mighty moun- 
tain boat, Iioa-fune-san^ as if driven in from the distant sea, and stranded 
on the splintered peaks scattered around the lofty monarch, Asama-yama. 
This grim sentinel towers nearly nine thousand feet above the ocean, the 
blue and purple tints that touch the upper part relieved lower down by 
the delicate shades of green running from the pine to the maple. Not 
least among the group of royal giants stands grand old Ikao, while still 
nearer to us, with its castles of clife and pointed spire, rise in bold relief 

1 Named "Rock-boat Mountain" from the shape of its peak: Iwa, rock; fune, boat; mru 
mountain. 



103 



104 THE FAR EAST. 

the castellated ramparts and huge arches of Miyogi-san, or Rocky Moun- 
tain. In the two lights of the dawning day the silver tower of peerless 
Fujiyama is pillared in the southern sky. On the west rolls the Sea of 
Japan, while in the glorified east the broad Pacific lies with unruffled 
bosom. 

The clouds that all night have hung over the mountains roll slowly 
away, as the starlight takes on the peculiar transparency of early morn- 
ing. Then the mists settle swiftly down over peak and pine-fronded hill, 
until their soft profiles are but dimly seen. Afar in the east a faint 
streak of crimson tinges the horizon. The transition that follows is as 
rapid as it is delicate and glorious. But the pen cannot reveal the sweet 
incense of the highland breeze and the fragrance of the flowers, for that 
requires a sense over which the mind is no mediator ; the brush cannot 
picture the glory of the summer dawn, flecking here and there with gold 
and pink the green carpet N3.ture has spread on the landscape, because 
the eye has no language to impart its treasures ; the imagination cannot 
bestow the softness of the songs that stir the heavenly air, as fancy has 
no gift to feel as others feel, and hear as others hear. 

But look ! the peerless mountain suddenly stands before us more re- 
splendent in her dazzling morning robes than at midday. Fleecy clouds 
fall away from her matchless form, as if the goddess had begun to dis- 
robe ; the gauze-like veil that has concealed her marble white counte- 
nance drops from the snowy forehead, that she may catch the first flash 
of the golden eye of the east. With jealous haste the hills of the north 
then tear aside with their long pine arms the mist curtains enveloping 
■^hem, when their daring profiles stand boldly out against a sapphire back- 
ground. These detached draperies of more than silken delicacy hang 
for awhile tremulous in the airy space, rising and falling with gentle undu- 
lations on the soft breath of morning ; now they break apart, and now 
they cling together ; now they are torn into a thousand shreds, to swim 
away on the current of air, growing dimmer and dimmer as they float 
into the distance, or sink slowly, lightly, into the dark valleys, unnum- 
bered veils of finest gauze w^afted whither the wind listeth. A fresh 
flaw of wind comes rushing up one of the rents in the mountains, the 
last delicate filaments are torn ruthlessly aside, and the smile of the risen 
sun illuminates the earth. 



JAPAN. 



105 



Leaving this station in the mountain pass, the railroad winds down the 
western descent through what is considered the very heart of picturesque 
Japan. Deep gullies now yawn constantly on the one hand, while on 
the other cloud-capped peaks look grimly down, none grander than old 
Asama-yama, who appears at the zenith of his glory from this point of 
Below, in the distance, lie the rice-fields of Iwamurata, looking in 



view. 



the month of harvest like golden foils laid on the wide-spreading plain. 




FUJIYA HOTEL AT MIYANOSHITA, 



Nowhere in the land of soft contrasts does the deep green of the pine-clad 
mountains oppose more vividly the gray of the lime belt, the brown of 
the lava tops, and the shadows of the furrowed valleys. 

There is no hamlet, however small, in Japan that does not have at least 
one shrine and a temple. It is equally true that every Japanese home 
contains the gods of Shinto and Buddha, the first to protect the family in 
their bodily wants, and the other as a guardian over their spirits wdien 
death shall come. The shrine of the first is easily distinguished from the 
temple of the other by its torii, always placed before it. 



106 THE FAR EAST. 

At Zenkoji is the celebrated temple of Amida, dedicated to the sacred 
three J Ainida, Kwannon, and Daiseishi, whose images are all enshrined 
here. This group is claimed to have been made by the renowned saint, 
Shaka Muni, from gold that he obtained from Mount Shuni, the centre 
of the universe. It is entwined with a tale of wonderful adventures in 
China and Corea before it was brought to Japan in 552 a. d., as a 
pledge of friendship from the king of the last country to the Emperor 
of Japan upon the entrance of the religion of Buddha into this country. 
It was received witli a storm of indignation from the followers of Shinto, 
and was subjected to all kinds of treatment. But legend says it was in 
vain that its enemies threw it into the sea, attempted to hew it into pieces, 
or tried to burn it. It came out of every attack unharmed, until in 602 
A. D. it found a peaceful resting-place at Zenkoji. 

The present temple was erected about two hundred years ago, and is 
a two-storied structure, 198 feet in length and 108 in width, with a heavy 
gable roof supported by 136 stone pillars. This roof is claimed to have 
69,384 rafters, a number exactly equal to the written characters of the 
Chinese version of the scripture of Buddha. One thousand and six hun- 
dred square feet, covered by eighty-eight mats, comprises the kneeling- 
room for the Avorshippers praying to the different gods arranged about at 
every available spot and niche. This ancient temple is rendered more 
unique and picturesque by the practice of painting upon the shingles the 
name of each person aiding in the support of the temple. These shingles 
are fifteen inches long and four wide. 

Night-watchmen are common throughout Japan, and in the small towns 
and villages they carry, as in olden times, two sticks made of hard wood 
called hioshigiy or "tune-blocks." All through the night, at regular 
intervals, the sharp click of these instruments striking together is heard. 
The hours are designated by the number of strokes of the sticks, five 
o'clock being given by five strokes, and the half hour by one click. 

The roads of Japan are kept in excellent condition, which is more easily 
done from their hard, smooth bed or bottom. At the wayside farms, that 
noisy but cheerful occupation of threshing grain is going on as we pass 
along in our jinrikisha, the work being done by both men and women. 
The well-dried straw has been laid on mats outside the barn, and the ker- 
nels are pounded out by clumsy-looking flails, which are handled with a 



JAPAN. 



107 



dexterity quite surprising. Another way of getting out the grain is to 
place the stalks on frames of bamboo and beat them with clubs. 

In the province of Echioo, on the northwest district of Hondo, the 
settlements are mostly small villages, and but few houses have thatched 
roofs. The majority are covered with shingles, which are held in place 
by cobblestones, as the winds of the winter season are very violent in 
this section. The women of this province are larger and more muscular 
than in some of the southern districts, which may be due largely to the 




TORIl, SHINTO TEMPLE GROUNDS. 



fact that they work as hard and as much out-of-doors as the men. It is 
no uncommon sight, but rather the rule, to see young and pretty girls 
working side by side with weather-beaten men, and the pathetic prospect 
of no better state in the immediate future lies before them and their 
children. They soon age and grow stout of figure, their good looks leav- 
ing them in a few years. Women smoke as much as the men, and in- 
variably carry pouches for pipe and tobacco by their sides. This part of 
the island does not offer the inviting prospects of other portions, unless 
it be in the number of children, which seem to be the fruitful crop of 
this rather cheerless country. The parents are poorly clad, while the 



108 



THE FAR EAST. 



younger members of the family are content with little, if any, clothing. 
The price of labour, whenever it commands a reward, is a mere pittance, 
women using the pick and shovel from sunrise to sunset for the paltry 
sum of ten cents. An example of this kind is where they are working for 
some railroad or improvement company, which seems to be about the 
only avenue open 
to them to earn 
money. 

The island of 
Sado lies off this 
coast about twenty 
miles from the 
mainland. Sado 
is forty miles in 
length and about 
eight miles in 
width, and has a 
population of 
135,000. It has 
mines of lead, cop- 
per, silver, and 
gold, the last hav- 
ing been discov- 
ered in consider- 
able quantities in 
the seventeenth 
century. 

The river Shi- 
nano-gawa, which 
turns over its 

floods to the Sea of Japan at Niigata, drains this province from the south, 
and the river Aka-gawa, from the mountains on the north. The first is a 
wide, shallow stream, often sluggish in its current. The other is more 
rapid, and has several pretty falls. 

This district is noted for the amount of cotton and tobacco it raises. 
It is a common sight to see young girls spinning, and only these are 




COrXTRY GIRL? 



JAPAN. 



109 



employed at this industry. One of the most frequent sights to be seen 
along the roads is a single ox or bull drawing a load of tobacco to the 
city, the yoke being simply a wooden stick held on top of the neck by a 
thong running underneath. 

Owing to a chronic weakness of the eyes, the natives wear huge, mush- 
room-shaped hats to shield them from the sun, and when the heat is most 
severe, wear big smoked glasses for further protection. These spectacles 
are made round instead of oval, and are two inches or more in diameter. 




SCHOOL, OLD STYLE. 



giving the long, thin countenance of the wearer a peculiar appearance. 
They still further add to the picturesqueness of their looks by straw mats 
suspended from their shoulders. 

Niigata, with a population of 34,000, was made an open port in 1869. 
This town is not particularly interesting to the tourist, and has fewer 
relics than the average city. 

Between Niigata on the west shore and Fuku-shima on the eastern 
boundary of the adjoining province of Iwashiro, stretches north and south 
the backbone of Hondo, affording a picturesque scenery. Here are vast 



110 THE FAR EAST. 

forests of cedars and cryptomerias, the former being used to a great extent 
for building purposes, nearly all of the floors of the houses being laid in 
this wood. Planed and finished without paint or varnish, it acquires a 
beautiful polish after long use. The most attractive mountains are the 
0-Bandai and Ko-Bandai, the latter rising to a height of over six thousand 
feet. As late as 1888 it showed the volcanic influences at work within by 
breaking forth with great vigour, destroying nearly five hundred people. 

One of the pleasant features of this country is its schoolhouses, square, 
substantial stone buildings, where often as many as seventy-five youths of 
both sexes are taught the principles of knowledge, songs and marching 
enlivening the course of studies.. Modern methods are being adopted to a 
greater extent than might be expected. A railroad penetrating this coun- 
try, and running for miles at a stretch along the ancient highway, is 
nearing completion. 




rp:ading a lettkr 



CHAPTER XII. 

THE EDEN OF THE NORTH. 

SHAPING our course now toward the eastern coast, and leaving 
behind us the railroad and all hope of a railroad, we plunge boldly 
into a country where the mountains present their grandest peaks, the 
valleys don their richest verdure, and the sky takes on that rare wealth of 
colouring peculiar to this region. As we proceed, signs of life become less 
apparent, until only the coal huts and smoky fires of the charcoal burners 
of Japan are scattered over the broken landscape, wherever there is suffi- 
cient growth to admit of their vocation. 

For a time the way grows more and more precipitous, the mountains 
become more bulky ; and then the latter gradually slope off in front into 
hillsides, the growth becomes dwarfed, stunted pines and bamboos taking 
the place of the lofty monarchs of the forests. Over the tops of these 
scrubs we catch the gleam of water, and soon realise that the sea is on 
either side and ahead of us. The last is the Strait of Tsugaru ; that 
on the right hand the Pacific Ocean ; on the left, the Sea of Japan. ^Ye 
have reached the northern shore of the main island of the Empire of the 
Far East, Hondo. Ahead of us lies the second island in size, Hokkaido, 
which has an area of about thirty thousand square miles and a population 
of nearly one hundred and fifty thousand. 

A somewhat boisterous passage across the strait takes us to Hakodate, 
which was the second Japanese port opened to American commerce, and 
the most important city in Hokkaido, — the North Road, or district, — 
which comprises not only this island, which until recently has been known 
as Yezo, but the crooked line of isles to the north of this, the Kuriles. 
Hakodate has a fine harbour, protected on the south by a rocky barrier 
over eleven hundred feet in height. The town lies at the foot of this, and 
has become quite a resort for invalids on account of its delightful climate. 

There is a museum at this place, among its other attractions, where is 
to be found an extensive collection of sea shells, birds of many kinds, and 

111 ^ 



112 



THE FAR EAST. 



relics of the stone age. Leaving Hakodate, we soon find that there are 
few good roads in Hokkaido, and that the best mode of travelling outside 
of these is on horseback. Much of the interior of this island is a primeval 
forest, seldom penetrated by man, and then only by the hunter of the bear 
and other animals having their haunts within the wilds. 

Before quitting Hakodate we frequently meet with a different type of 
people from those we have been accustomed to see in Hondo. These we 
soon learn are the Ainos, as they are now called, and considered the 




REFRESHMENT SELLER. 



original inhabitants of the more southern islands, but who have been 
driven to this less genial clime by their overpowering rivals. The dis- 
tinction between them and the Japanese is quickly seen, one of the most 
noticeable characteristics being their great abundance of hair. Except that 
they are milder in their natures, they bear about the same relationship to 
Dai Nippon and its present people that the American Indians do to the 
United States and its inhabitants. They have eyes with the inward fold 
peculiar to the Japanese, but they have wider countenances, broader 
shoulders, and more sturdy limbs. The men sometimes reach a height 



JAPAN. 113 

of six feet, though more commonly standing from five feet six inches to 
eight. With their heavy growth of hair and beard, which is never allowed 
to be shorn, they bear a marked resemblance to the description of Esau. 
The average height of the women is about five feet, and their costume 
does not differ materially from that of the men, their principal gar- 
ment being a frock open in front and held about the waist by a girdle. 
It is usually ornamented simply by embroidery done in some fanciful 
design of individual invention. Unlike the men, the women keep their 
hair cut quite short, while they give the appearance of a moustache to the 
upper lip by tattooing it. 

The habits of these peculiar people are as simple as their personal 
appearance. Their dwelling is simply a hut raised on posts, and sheltered 
by a reed roof. Their sleeping-couches are rude benches built around the 
walls and covered with mats; A hole is left in one wall for a place of 
entrance, while a second serves for a window, and affords the only ventila- 
tion they have. The Ainos, in their religious rites, worship the sun and 
moon as deities, and the bear as a sort of mediator between themselves 
and these others. 

In certain districts Hokkaido has a rich virgin soil, but the Ainos lived 
solely by hunting and fishing, until the new government at Tokyo in 1870 
decided to try and raise these people from their barbarism by teaching 
them how to raise crops. Accordingly a farm was established patterned 
after a California fruit plantation. In order to carry out this experiment 
successfully, Sapporo, situated near the centre of the island, was selected as 
the seat of control here. The first thing to be done was to cut a road 
through a trackless wilderness for nearly seventy-five miles from Hako- 
date, and other highways had to be opened, so that in all nearly one hun- 
dred and fifty miles of road were built. In addition to this expense large 
sums were laid out in mills to saw lumber, and in machinery of one kind 
and another to run the work of building houses and bridges across the 
numerous streams intersecting the country. From such a beginning, and 
with this worthy object, sprung into existei^e a capital with houses of 
boarded walls and shingled roofs, similar to the homes of our own Far 
West. 

The building of railroads next engaged the attention of the Japanese, 
and now Sapporo has connection by rail with Otarunai, on the north coast, 



114 



THE FAR EAST. 



twenty miles distant ; to the Cola mines of Poronai, thirty-five miles away j 
and southward, to Shin-moraran, a good port on Volcano Bay. Along 
these same routes are lines of telegraph, which have been of great benefil 
in opening up this country. 

The natives taking kindly the efforts of the government, wonderful 




A FISHERMAN. 



results have followed. The trains into Sapporo from either direction rush 
through thousands of well-tilled farms, Avhere a little more than a quarter 
of a century ago stretched vast forests, which were the lairs of wild beasts. 
Crops natural to the temperate zone, Indian corn, melons, cucumbers, 
onions, asparagus, and others, yield good harvests ; fruit trees grow abun- 
dantly. Horses, cattle, hogs, and some sheep are among the domesticated 



JAPAN. 



115 



animals. So here, in a climate that causes the ground to be covered more 
or less with snow for half the year, with the simple means at their com- 
mand, by the assistance of their conquerors the Ainos have builded for 
themselves a thriving agricultural country, a region of pleasant surprises 
to the newcomer. Away from this district the Ainos remain about the 
same as in past generations, primitive in their customs and gentle in their 
associations. They number in all about twenty-five thousand. 

Much of the. scenery in Hokkaido is picturesque and interesting, particu- 




LANTERN MAKERS. 



larly on the northern shores, but the southland claims us, and, with a brief 
sojourn among the " Yezo hills," we bid adieu to its lakes, mountains, vol- 
canoes, and picturesque people, to recross the Strait of Tsugaru, clouds of 
strange-looking sea-fowl screaming over our heads as the little steamer 
heads for the main island. 

Upon reaching the shore of Hondo we take the grand trunk line for 
Tokyo, the first place of interest which we pass being Sendai, the " city 
of enchantment." We then pass through the region of the lacquer-tree, 
which affords that varnish so much used in Japan. It resembles our ash 
to a considerable extent, and it is its sap which is so extensively used to 



116 



THE FAR EAST. 



finish wood. It also has an oil and vegetable wax that are valuable for 
lighting purposes. 

Another tree of especial value growing in this country is the camphor, 
which is an evergreen belonging to the laurel family, and has great 
clusters of yellow flowers considered with great favour. But the gum 
obtained from this tree is what makes it the most valuable. This sub- 
stance is obtained by cutting the wood into small pieces and then extract- 




FEEDING SILKWORMS. 



ing the sap by steaming the chips in a wooden trough until the sap oozes 
out and is caught in a vessel placed for that purpose. 

Even going at our slow rate we soon reach Fukushima, the centre of the 
silk industry. This occupation is almost entirely monopolised by girls 
and women, as they are better adapted to it on account of their lighter 
touch and greater patience than the men. Groves of mulberry-trees are 
everywhere to be seen. The homes of the people have a busy appearance, 
with the women stripping leaves and reeling silk, while rows on rows of 
white and yellow cocoons are placed on mats exposed to the sun's rays in 
order to '^ kill " the chrysalis. Three weeks of constant care, day and 



JAPAN. 117 

night, are required to hatch the eggs, and even then many of them are 
lost. Leaving this region behind, we reenter the country of rice-fields 
and tea-plantations, where young girls are to be seen gathering the leaves 
of the last-named plants, and putting them on drying-mats. The branch 
road running to Nikko is reached, and we find ourselves travelling the 
same route taken in coming up. Again we view the plantations and the 
flooded fields, the level patches of deep green stalks, the stacks of ripened 
grain belted with their natural fringes, until we are familiar with it all, 
and hail with gladness the reappearance of Tokyo's vast expanse of homes, 
business houses, and public buildings. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

SHADOWS OF DEPARTED POWER. 

THE day has already come when the stranger can travel to all parts 
of the island empire without hindrance, though until very recently 
the one way open to him was the Tokaido, the imperial grand trunk 
of the main island. This word means, as has been said, '- Eastern Sea 
Road." Along this historic highway were scattered in ancient times 
several cities of importance, among which may be mentioned Odawara, 
now but a shadow of its old self, Atami, Okitsu, Shizuoka, Hamamatsu, 
Okazaki, Nagoya, while but slightly removed are the great silk-making, 
tea-raising, and pottery -producing regions of Uji, Gifu, and Banko. 

Following this great highway, the traveller beholds miles of unob- 
structed view of the Pacific, with its silvery beaches on the one hand ; on 
the other, ranges of mountains crowned with snowy crests ; while he 
passes over reedy plains or through beautiful towns, his pathway bordered 
for the greater part of the distance by lofty cryptomerias. These vener- 
able and gigantic trees were planted by command of that noted shogun 
(general) whose tomb we visited at Nikko, lyeyasu. This was done about 
265 years ago, or very soon after the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock. 
It is true many of the original trees have fallen away for others of a 
more recent planting, but the majority standing to-day bear the ancient 
grandeur of that far-distant day. If the fame of that deified warrior rests 
largely upon his prowess with arms, he is to be credited with many 
humane acts, among which ranks high the planting of these cedars of 
Japan along her most frequented highways. The prime object in doing 
this was to prevent sunstroke to the numerous travellers passing along 
the road. How many tired and perspiring pedestrians have blessed his 
name, for this work is beyond estimation, but the number must be legion. 
This grand thoroughfare is the equal, if not superior, of that leading to 
Nikko, of which he was the originator. Beginning with the seventeenth 
century, twice each year gorgeous retinues of daimios (nobles) passed over 

118 



JAPAN. 



119 



this route to offer to the shogun at Tokyo, then called Yedo, their renewal 
of fealty. 

As is the case with many other old roads in Japan, much of the ancient 
glory of the Tokaido has departed with the advent of the railroad, which 
runs for long stretches within sight of it. This modern rival for the 
patronage of travel, was begun in 1872, and completed seventeen years 
later. The difference between the old way and the new is aptly shown by 




YO MEI GATE, MKKO. 



the fact that while it formerly took seventeen days to perform the journey, 
it can be compassed in as many hours by the steam horse. 

Wishing to stop over at Tokyo until another day, before resuming our 
journey to Yokohama, and thence along the renowned Tokaido to the west- 
ern country, we improve the opportunity to see the yasJiiki, or " spread-out 
house," as the Japanese word means. Now Japan can claim as the orig- 
inal productions of her own artists and architects three forms of build- 
ings, or structures. One of these is the torii, found at the entrance of all 
Shinto shrines, and which has been described. The second of the list 
is the shiro, or castle, which claims a high place on account of the vast 
extent of the work, and the great size of the stone used in its building 



120 THE FAR EAST. 

material. The castle of Ozasaka, built by Hideyoshi, contains stones forty 
feet in length, ten feet in width, and five or six feet in thickness. In the 
highest part of the citadel of Tokyo are stones over sixteen feet long, six 
feet high, and three feet thick. What makes the size of these blocks of 
granite seem most remarkable is the distance from which they have been 
brought, — as far away as Hiogo, more than two hundred miles distant. 
They were drawn neither by steam nor by beasts, but by human arms, 
and were raised to their lofty positions by the same power. 

The third of these products of Japanese skill, the yashiki, has a unique 
and striking appearance. This consists of four lines of houses arranged 
in the form of a hollow square. In the centre of this front wall are 
erected mansions for the daimio and his ministers, while the outside 
dwellings are occupied by their retainers. The array on the frontage has 
the appearance of a single building on foundations of stone, with rows of 
grated windows. The hollow interior is filled with gardens, walks, and 
fire-proof warehouses. 

A ditch or moat, usually eight to ten feet in width, and varying in depth 
from three to twelve feet, filled generally with running water brought 
from a long distance, encircled the yashiki. The lotus-flowers were allowed 
to grow along the rims of the moats. In case the castle stood on an 
elevation the slopes were grassed over, while the escarp was faced with 
blocks of stone. Often miles of frontage of these yashikis were to be seen 
in the larger towns, under the old regime, making a most monotonous 
appearance. The result to the two-s worded gentry living within them 
can only be surmised. " Some of these yashikis covered many acres of 
ground, and the mansions of the Go Sanke families and the great clans 
of Satsuma, Kaga, Choshiu, and Chikuzen are known at once upon the 
map by their immense size and commanding positions. Within their 
grounds are groves, shrines, cultivated gardens, fish-ponds, hillocks, and 
artificial landscapes of unique and surpassing beauty. The lord of the 
mansion dwelt in a central building, approached from the great gate by a 
wide stone path and grand portico of keyaki-wood. Long, wide corridors, 
laid with soft mats, led to the master's chamber. All the woodwork, except 
certain portions, stood in virgin grain like watered silk, except where 
relieved here and there by a hard gleam of black lacquer-like enamel. 
The walls were gorgeously papered with gold, silver, or fanciful and 



JAPAN. 121 

coloured designs, characteristic of Japanese art, — among which the pine, 
plum, and cherry tree, the bamboo, lily, the stork, tortoise, and lion, or 
fans, were the favourites. The sliding doors, or partitions, of which three 
sides of a Japanese room are composed, were decorated with paintings." 
With the advance of Japan along new lines, these structures, the outcome 
of the Japanese tent in the early days of Yedo, are growing yearly less 
frequent in Tokyo. In the light of modern civilisation there is no call to 
replace those the hungry flames destroy. 

We are impressed more than ever by the size of Tokyo, which is about 
equal to that of London. An odd feature to us is the general lack of 
sidewalks, the pedestrians passing along in the middle of the streets, 
without particular danger to themselves. The drivers of vehicles of 
numerous kinds carry horns, which they blow to warn aside any foot- 
passenger who may be in their w^ay. The Broadway of Japan is the Bund 
of Tokyo, along which an odd mixture of humanity is constantly passing 
and repassing, the representatives of many races of men and many condi- 
tions in life. In the midst of this surging mass we caught sight of an 
undersized man, dressed in a sort of mixture of Oriental and Occidental 
fashion. Notwithstanding his singular dress, a glance showed that he 
was an American, and the load of books under his arms that he was a 
scholar. Upon inquiry, we learned that he was the celebrated Lafcadio 
Hearn, the author of several books upon Japan, and at present a professor 
of foreign literature in the university. In fact, he is the only foreigner 
left in the Japanese institutions of education, where a few years ago 
American and European teachers were common. But that was before 
the Chinese-Japanese war, and even this man of letters might not be the 
exception had he retained more of his Americanism and adopted less of 
his chosen country. 

The train leaves Tokyo for Yokohama at 1.30 p. m., and bidding the 
capital good-bye for another period, which may be longer than our first, 
two hours later we are again threading tlie streets of the latter city. Here 
we plan a tour into the heart of Japan, intending to visit the historic 
spots of the empire, which were the battle-grounds of the days of feudal- 
ism. In order to do this to our greatest satisfaction we shall travel 
little by rail, preferring the jinrikisha, or that still more primitive mode, 
travel by foot. 



122 



THE FAR EAST. 



If not particularly attractive in itself, Yokohama is favoured with 
beautiful surroundings. Twelve miles from this city is Ornori, where 
Professor Morse discovered mounds of shells similar to those, found in 
Florida, New England, and Denmark. Near by are the temples of Ikegami, 
which annually are the scene of one of the grandest religious pageants to 
be seen in Japan. 

A popular seashore resort is at Honmoku, on the beach of Mississippi 




MAIN STlfKET, TOKYO. 



Bay, where is found that famous tea-house of Tsukimikan, which means 
" Moon House." Another fine bathing place is Yamashita, which is con- 
ducted in a more primitive manner. Boating is very much in vogue at 
the former place, wdiich has a fine beach. 

Twenty miles from Yokohama lies the shadow of that city of sacred 
memories and relics, Kamakura, which was the capital of the shoguns for 
nearly three hundred years, beginning in 1192. In the zenith of the 
prosperity and military glory, a million inhabitants lived where to-day are 
plains covered with forest, patches of rice, and fields of tasseled corn. 



JAPAN. 



123 



Kamakiira had a most eventful history. In 1333, two Japanese warriors, 
named Ashikaga and Yoshisada, after a long siege, captured and nearly 
destroyed the city. Then the former established a new dynasty of shoguns. 
Among the historic curiosities of this place is the temple of Hachiman, 
standing on a high plateau, which is reached by a path leading up fifty- 
eight stone steps. The hero deified here was a god of war. This temple, 
plain in its architecture, contains many relics of the long and sanguinary 




VIEW ON THE BLUFF, YOKOHAIV' 



wars of the old regime, and is a treasury of military collections to be 
prized. In reaching this sacred spot the visitor passes through a cluster 
of ancient trees, among which is a venerable icho, over twenty feet in 
circumference, and asserted to be over a thousand years old. This noble 
patriarch has a wide-spreading foliage that, under the touch of the autumn 
frost, turns to leaves of gold. 

Beyond this spot is a grove of great religious interest, holding within its 
sacred precincts the best image of the Great Buddha to be found in Japan. 
In the park at Nara is a larger n^presentative of the head of the leading 



124 



THE FAR EAST. 



religion of the Far East, but this image is acknowledged to be the better 
work of art. There are many notable images of Buddha to be found in 
the Land of the Gods, but not one which can compare with this in its 
impressive presentation of the principles of Buddhism, in its historic 
associations, and in its size and work as a masterpiece of art, — sitting 
here on the deserted plain of Japan's ancient capital, with its mighty but 
reposeful face turned toward the sea, with a look fitting its august mys- 
tery. This image was made in 1251, and at that time was covered by a 




ROAD TO THE TEMPLE. 



temple, one hundred and fifty feet square. A tidal wave, in 1369, swept 
away the building, but left the statue uninjured. The temple was soon 
after rebuilt, but as if the elements held some especial enmity against it, 
for the second time it was destroyed, 1494, two years after the discovery 
of America by Columbus, and it has never been reconstructed. 

Though standing in the open air, the Bronze Buddha remains to-day in 
an excellent state of preservation, and is surrounded by a park, cared for 
by individuals. It is a perfect symbolisation of calm resignation and com- 
plete mastery over all the passions and tempests that beset the human 
frame, while an intellectual light pervades each of its mighty features. 



JAPAN. 



125 



Buddha is represented to have had great love for all dumb creatures. A 
noted Japanese warrior and king, named Yoritomo, is credited with con- 
ceiving the idea of placing here at his capital an image of his god which 
should outrival that at Nara. He died before he could carry out his plan, 
but one of the ladies at his court finished the work of collecting funds, and 
Kamakura's "Buddha" was cast in bronze on the spot by Ono Goroe- 
mon. Its height lacks only five inches of fifty feet, while its greatest 



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A RUSTIC TKMFLE SHRINE. 



girth is ninety-seven feet and two inches. The width from ear to ear is 
seventeen feet and nine inches. The eyes are of unalloyed gold ; the fore- 
head is embossed with silver that would weigh thirty pounds. As its 
name implies, the image is cast of bronze, the parts carefully brazed 
together. In the hollow of the interior is a small shrine, and a ladder 
leads up into the head. 

Amid a solemn silence, the supplicant enters into the awful presence of 
the graven god, and prostrating himself before the shrine pleads for its 



126 THE FAR EAST. 

favour. How many thousands have here each year offered up their prayers 
to the divine ruler through this object of worship, there is no way of 
knowing ; but since the image was first placed here the number must be 
beyond the most daring calculation of man. 

A short distance from Diabutsu, the Great Buddha, is a temple standing 
on a summit overlooking the plain of Kamakura, noted principally for 
holding a wooden image, gilded and lacquered, and thirty feet in height, 
known as the goddess of mercy, — Kwannon. This deity has modestly 
sought shelter from the common gaze behind closed doors, and who would 
look upon her must pay a small fee. At this temple there is also a popu- 
lar idol, the god of money. He does not sit, as an American might expect, 
upon typical money-bags, but rests on two sacks of rice, the Japanese 
idea of prosperity, and holds in his hand a mallet. The superstitious 
believe he has power to help them in affairs of finance. Another potent 
image, let the believer tell it, is a god wdio possesses the power to cure the 
ills of the human body, providing the afflicted simply rubs that part of 
the figure where his ills are located. 

It requires no great strain of the imagination of the modern visitor, as 
he wanders amid these relics of other days, — temples of a thousand years 
looking as if they had been reared yesterday, and images remarkable as 
works of art though hideous in themselves, — to imagine himself walking 
along the well-ordered paths of these ancient groves, where so many feet 
have pressed the sod, and under such conflicting emotions as he of neces- 
sity can know nothing. ' Everywhere one turns one is confronted with 
sights and traditions of gods and goddesses, all of whom seem strangely 
out of time, and yet as miraculously having something to show for the 
superstition that gave them being. 



CHAPTER XIV. 

THE WONDEKS OF AT AMI. 

THE Tokaido railroad swings to the northward, and climbs the ridge 
reaching away to Fujiyama at Gotemba, in order to pass around 
one of the most interesting historic points in Japan, Hakone Lake. 
This charming sheet of water is held, at a height of over 2,300 feet above 
the sea, in a basin that was once the crater of an active volcano. Shel- 
tered by the adjacent grassy peaks, the resplendent beauty of the sunny 
slopes of the Peerless Mountain are clearly reflected in the placid bosom 
of this Loch Lomond of the Far East, situated in the midst of a scene upon 
which nature has lavishingly bestowed her treasures. Hakone Hills, as 
well as possessing great historic interest, have become a noted health 
resort, on account of the numerous hot springs to be found in this thrice- 
favoured locality. There is a double charm in lingering about these 
springs, which the tourist and health-seeker is not apt to deny himself. 
While some of these outlets of the spongy earth are perfectly clear, others 
are dense with the sulphur they contain. The odour several of these 
emit is detected miles away. Not only is this a beneficial retreat for the 
invalid, but it affords a profitable location for the innkeeper, while a con- 
siderable supply of sulphur is sent to the markets. Formerly this region 
was known as Kojigoku, or " Little Hell," but the emperor, on a visit to 
the place in 1877, changed this to Ko-waki-dani, which means " little 
boiling valley." 

If one at first wearies of the softness of a Japanese landscape and the 
dreaminess of its atmosphere, and looks back with longing to the rugged 
wildness of an American scerie, he eventually learns to admire this languid 
beauty. It may be a loss of energy in the end, but it is a robbery we do 
not feel. 

At Kodzu we turn to the south, to find, at the end of an avenue of noble 
pines, on the shore of the sea, that silent, dejected town, Odawara, a queen 

127 



128 



THE FAR EAST. 



sitting in mourning over her departed grandeur. Formerly this was the 
stronghold of the Hojo clan, one of the early factions of warlike power, 
and it was the last place to hold out against the triumphant forces of 
lyeyasu. Becoming a part of the territory belonging to this conqueror, 
when he took up his capital at Yedo, Odawara dwindled into an insignifi- 
cant town. Eventually its situation made it a promising commercial city, 
when a second enemy worse than the first, the cholera, left only a handful 




IN A NOBLEMAN S GARDEN. 



of its inhabitants, and it has never recovered from this visitation of disease 
and death. 

Atami, that strange but popular little village by the sea, next attracts 
our attention, and we leave Odawara in her -gloom to follow a road run- 
ning in and out of numerous orange groves, but losing sight of the water 
only at rare intervals. Now and then we catch sight of lines of fine 
specimens of one of the most interesting trees in Japan, the hamamatsu, 
or coast fir. These trees seem to have an especial liking for the sea- 



JAPAN. 129 

brine, for they press their way down to the very edge of the water, often 
dipping their arms into the bay. 

Atami lies between the arms of two verdant hills, that vie with each 
other in keeping their charge from slipping into the sea. This delightful 
resort is noted for two attractions above its minor charms, its lilies and its 
geysers. 

Artificially, Japan is the very paradise of flowers and birds. The lead- 
ing figures in the decorative art so common and highly perfected are 
these fairest gifts of nature, until the canvas literally glows with the one 
and awakens with the songs of the other. Japanese fiction abounds with 
vivid pictures of the plum and cherry blossoms ; we see in fancy a land 
brilliant with the varying colours of flowering buds, and the lives of its 
people a continual round of floral picnics. The four seasons are those 
of the chrysanthemum, peony, iris, and wistaria. Thus we are led to 
expect everywhere the beauty and fragrance of flowers, the song and 
music of birds, which shall make of this fortunate country an Hesperian 
garden. But the real Japan is remarkably silent of songsters, and barren 
of the flowering plants. " There are no pastures dewed with daisies and 
starred with buttercups and dandelions and cowslips ; no glades carpeted 
with bluebells ; no golden plains of orange-scented gorse ; no groves of 
laburnums and lilacs ; no fields of glowing poppies." The ever pervading 
love for the beautiful has been inculcated through a longing for it rather 
than possession of it. 

Groves of fir and pine, both red and black, clothe nearly all the slopes 
of the indented mountain ranges, and, where these hardy trees cannot find 
sustenance, the clinging azalea carpets rock and precipice to the very brink 
of the tumbling cataract. This shrub is the only flowering plant that is 
really to be considered of supreme importance. Even this has that love 
for its native haunt that it will not thrive except where nature has given 
it root. These favoured spots are few and far apart. Of course we are 
speaking now of what nature and not man has done for Japan. 

Even in the last situation, when we come to the core of truth, we find 
that the oft-praised cherry is conspicuous for its want rather than for its 
richness of blossom. What is true of this applies to the plum. The 
beauty of a well-ordered grove of cherries is not to be gainsaid, but it is 
of a lower grade than that of an American apple orchard. The fruit 



130 



THE FAR EAST. 



being worthless, and there being a scarcity of flowers, the people bow to 
the cherry-tree in worshipful adoration. 

We see this same idea illustrated in the matter of the leading, and, it 
might almost be said, of the only universal fruit of Japan, the pear, which 
is really a second-class article. There being no better subject to outrival 
it, it is eaten everywhere in the empire, and given a conspicuous place on 
every fruit-stand. It is carefully cultivated in groves and orchards, 
whither visitors are invited in the season of ripening. These orchards 




:ris garden. 



are objects of beauty in themselves, being planted with checker-board 
uniformity, and carefully trained, laterally, along trellises of regular height 
and form. Natural archways, reaching for long distances, are places of 
great beauty both in flowering and fruiting seasons. So it is, the empire 
over. Let flowers be scarce or plentiful, the love for them is the growth 
of many generations, and there is no person so high or humble who does 
not treasure the knowledge and worship of them in his heart. 

Wherever the floral giver bestows her gifts, she does it with a liberal 
hand, and if the slopes of Hakone are resplendent during the spring with 
uncultivated gardens of wild azaleas in their pink, white, and variegated 



JAPAN. 



131 



hues, so are the hedges and hillocks, the vales and plains, of Atami, decked 
to profusion with miniature groves of hydrangea in their glowing foliage, 
and blue, white, and lilac blossoms, with lilies of gorgeous colouring burst- 
ing upon the landscape like waterfalls, whose foam is of many hues. The 
princess of these floral showers is the magnificent white lily that proudly 
lifts its snowy crest, nearly a foot in diameter, to the height of a tall man. 
Its stems are pink, and its broad leaves are splashed with crimson stains. 




VIEW AT ATAMI. 



Of less haughty showing, and of more modest beauty, are the orange, 
white, or soft-tinted pink flowers that seem everywhere present. Not 
content with beautifying the earth, these lilies venture to the very edge 
of the seashore, and their sisters, in scarlet dress, spread out over the 
rocks, until all their bleak barrenness is concealed under a coverlid of daz- 
zling brightness. 

While the lily is the object of beauty at Atami, the w^onder of this 
place is its remarkable geyser. This sulphur spring, which has been the 



132 THE FAR EAST. 

source of prosperity where was once poverty, is located near the centre 
of the village, and within a short distance of the seashore. It is not 
active all of the time, and occasionally for days it is as silent and motion- 
less on the surface as if its powers had been spent. Then a low rum- 
bling, swiftly increasing in volume until it can be heard for a long distance, 
proclaims its coming ; the earth quivers and shakes for rods around ; and 
the hot, sulphurous stream bursts forth, rising several yards into the air. 
This upheaval lasts for ten, sometimes fifteen, minutes, when the power 
underneath seems suddenly to collapse, and only a dense cloud of white 
mist remains to mark the scene. These displays come with clockwork 
regularity every four hours, except during those rare periods when the 
interior forces seem to be taking a vacation, and, though continuing less 
than a quarter of an hour, present a vivid and impressive phenomenon 
the beholder will not soon forget. Baths in this oyu, hot water, are 
considered very beneficial, and Atami is continually thronged with health- 
seekers. 

Atami would not be a Japanese town did it not have its temple. 
The latter stands just back of the village, embowered in the green woods, 
where visitors delight to wander on the hot, sultry, do-yo days of August. 
The first among these ancient trees to attract attention is a venerable 
camphor, supposed to be the largest of its kind in Japan, and possibly 
the oldest. Its years and weight have separated its trunk so it has two 
bodies, looking at first like the trunks of twin trees, whose united girth is 
over sixty feet. If betraying evidence of its great age in its body, the 
ancient giant shows a vigorous old age in its huge canopy of dense foliage 
overhead. 

As we sit under the cooling shadows of this famous tree, accompanied 
by our inseparable guide, we recall the strange story told us in the moun- 
tains of the north regarding this king of the greenwood, as well as of the 
temple on our right, now slowly falling into ruins, and of the geyser in 
the distance, at this moment sending forth its torrent of steam and hot 
water. Our companion must be a mind-reader, for he begins to repeat 
with great fervour of speech and token of faith the story. 

Not always has Atami been the thriving and happy town of to-day, and 
away back in the period of its poverty and distress there lived here a 
very good and pious man, whose one great source of sorrow was the 



JAPAN. 



133 



extreme su:ffermg of his people for the simple necessities of life. In those 
days there were not the many ways of earning a livelihood that we have 
now, and the inhabitants were fain to depend on their catch of fish for 
food. Even the sea was fickle, and often its tides carried the finny tribes 
of its kingdom to other places, so that the people living at Atami fre- 
quently went hungry. 

This holy man had taken up his abode in a temple on this hilltop, 
so that he might get a wide view of the bay, and warn the people when- 




TKMPLK COURT. 



ever the spirits of the deep frowned upon the land. You see yonder the 
ruined walls of his temple-home. During the warm season this devout 
priest loved to sit here under this camphor-tree, which was then hale and 
hearty, spreading its wide branches to the gateway of the temple. One 
day, while a famine was on his people, who were groaning and complain- 
ing in their hopelessness, the faithful priest, worn with watching and 
praying, fell asleep at his post. 

While he slept, he dreahied that the seashore was heaped with fish of 
many kinds that were delicious to the palate. In his joy he started 



134 



THE FAR EAST. 



toward the scene, when a great noise and commotion in the water 
stopped him. Huge clouds of steam filled the air, so that he could hardly 
see the bay, which was churned into foam by some terrible power under- 
neath. He saw now that the fish all lay on their backs, dead, every one 
of them having 
been scalded to 
death by the 
boiling water. 

His distress 
was so great at 
this sight that 
he awoke ; but 
with his eyes 
wide open he 
looked on the 
same strange 
spectacle, only 
the dead fish 
were piled deeper 
on the seashore, 
while the vol- 
canic forces sent 
spouts of hot 
water high into 
the air. He 
closed his eyes 
to shut out the 
sight, and prayed 
that this awful 
visitation of hor- 
ror and desolation might not be felt by his people. In the midst of this 
unselfish prayer he heard a terrific crash behind him, and upon turning 
around, in new fright, he saw that the huge camphor-tree had split in 
twain from root to branch ! As he looked upon it dumfounded, lo ! a 
beautiful goddess stepped from the heart of the riven tree, and, handing 
him a branch from its broad arms, said, in a voice of peaceful intonation : 




A SHINTO PRIEST. 



W* v' ■'■' T, 



Japanese Postman [Tattooed) 



JAPAN. 



135 



'' Take this camphor wand, holy man ! and wave it thrice over the 
boiling sea ; and ere its final circuit is finished toss it far over the water 
in the name of Kwannon, the goddess of mercy, when thy prayer shall be 
answered, and Atami's woe ^\\\\ become Atami's joy." 

He took the proffered camphor branch, and as he did so she, as it 
seemed, vanished into air. Mindful of his duty, he ran toward the sea- 
shore, which he reached quickly, though an old man. On the shore, with 




THEATRE AT OSAKA. 



the hot water hissing at his feet like many reptiles, he waved the charmed 
wand thrice over the tide, and threw it far out to sea, with a prayer for 
Atami's salvation ringing out clear and strong above the tumult, that 
Kwannon might hear it. Immediately a mighty convulsion shook the 
earth all around him, followed by a deep rumbling underground, which 
grew louder and nearer each moment. Then, with a deafening roar and 
a rush frightful to behold, the earth opened, sending forth a torrent of 
seething, steaming water, which ran down to sea. At the same time, the 



136 THE FAR EAST. 

water of the bay became calm, and tbe fish swimming in it had nothing 
more to suffer from its flood. 

All the people now gathered about the fountain of hot, sulphurous 
water, and marvelled, and trembled for the end. But the prophecy of 
the goddess had come true : Atami's woe had become Atami's joy. 
The ill soon learned of the wonderful curative powers of the geyser, 
and came from afar to be healed. If the fish swam shy or bold in the 
sea, the population of Atami were no longer dependent upon them for 
their food, and cared not. Wise men have said that the goddess of the 
sacred camphor-tree was Kwannon herself. Be that as it may, the visitor 
of to-day sees proof of her coming in the riven trunk of the tree, and 
again in the living geyser, which is both the wonder and the wealth of 
Atami. 



CHAPTER XV. 

THE RIP VAN WINKLE OF JAPAN. 

THE rivers of Japan are short, but their careers are as brilliant as 
they are brief. Innumerable rivulets, bursting their silvery bonds 
amid the wild gorges of the Fujiyama regions, unite their volumes 
to form turbulent streams before the lowlands are reached. What is here 
lost in number is more than made up in swollen floods. Fed by so many 
tributaries, the rise of water in this network of rivers is often rapid, so 
that when the ice and snow melt on the mountains the effect is startling 
along the courses which are incapable of carrying off the increased tide. 
But these generally subside as swiftly as they rise, though this does not 
relieve the difficulty of bridging these erratic streams. The Japanese 
have long understood the art of bridge-making, but the amount of capital 
required to build the colossal structures necessary to span these mountain 
rivers has, until within a few years, deterred the people from attempting 
to reach satisfactory results. Japan has now several bridges of huge 
dimensions, built with no little engineering skill. 

The rivers of the Tokaido district become almost dry during the winter 
months, but, swollen by the thaws of spring, they overflow their banks and 
run wild for a few days. The longest of these streams is the Ten-ru, 
Heavenly Dragon River, which rises in the Nakasendo, or Middle Moun- 
tain road, near the thrifty town of Uyeda, and traverses 130 miles of 
country. The Oigawa finds its source over ten thousand feet above 
sea-level, while the Fujikawa, a stream fifty miles in length, drains the 
Peerless Mountain. 

This last giant of sleeping volcanoes, whose prismatic splendours and 
artistic sublimity have been so often expressed in works of Japanese art, 
now attracts our intimate attention. Seen from the distant ocean, its 
truncated crest, wrapped in a robe of snow for three-fourths of the time^ 
looks like a pink and white pillar rising abruptly from the immeasurable 
deep. The first land view defines it, some fifty miles away, as a lonely 

137 



138 THE FAR EAST. 

sentinel in white, the pinnacle of more than fifty square miles of country, 
every foot of which has helped to rear this gigantic monarch. Seen in 
the clear light of morning, a mystic halo seems to encircle it, from which 
it bursts forth like a jewel of purest lustre set in an opaline sky. Under 
this effect, it is easy to accept the poetical signification of its name. 

On a nearer approach, its complete isolation is removed, and other satel- 
lites, one of them Oyama, as high as Mount Washington, in New England, 




FUJIKAWA RIVER LOOKING TOWARD FUJIYAMA. 

become visible, one after another, until it is seen that this chief is really 
the central summit of a court of serrated cones rising from attendant 
mountain ranges and detached ridges and peaks. Here the monarch 
holds his court in the realm of glittering mountain-tops, whose dazzling 
splendours aptly bear out all that tradition has attributed to this grand 
panorama. 

The voice of ages says that this vast mountain was builded in a single 
night, and the earth and substance taken to rear its majestic form were 



JAPAN. 139 

taken from that hollow in the ground, two hundred miles distant, which 
is now filled with the water of Lake Biwa. In the light of modern 
knowledge, this does not seem altogether impossible or improbable. 
Within a comparatively short time, that mighty protuberance which 
breaks the steady rise of the eastern slope of Mishima has been lifted 
bodily from a depression in the mountain's lower regions. 

If it is now inactive, one need not go far to find ample evidence of the 
terrific upheavals of earth, ashes, and molten masses, which are veiled but 
not concealed by the thin growth of vegetables creeping over Fujiyama's 
broad, pumice-covered slopes. What Vesuvius is to Naples, Kilauea to 
Hawaii, Shasta to California, Hecla to Iceland, Fujiyama is to Japan. 
It is a source of national pride, of majestic grandeur, of fear but half 
concealed. If Nature created this mountain in haste, she gave it the soft- 
ness of contour, placidity of aspect, and tenderness of verdure so common 
to Japanese volcanoes. In fact, this term in Japan loses its meaning of 
barrenness, desolation, and disruption, for all this is swiftly reduced 
by climatic influences, or concealed under a dense mantle of vegetation. 
We have seen, in the north, an alpine wildness and sublimity, but in the 
heart of Japan " green valleys nestle in the arms of sloping hills, while 
these are clothed in feathery bamboo or billow-boughed pines, which kiss 
the fantastic seashore, where the waves seldom raise their cadence above 
a whisper, as if fearful of breaking the brooding silence, deepened rather 
than disturbed by the sweet tone of the temple bells." 

Pilgrimages to the summit of Fujiyama are made with all the religious 
ardour of similar journeys in India to the holy shrines of Mecca. More 
than ten thousand pious pilgrims clothed in spotless white garments, with 
enormous hats on their heads, and long, stout staves in their. hands, annu- 
ally wind their way slowly upward toward the lofty crater of this sacred 
mountain as if bound to an incense-burning altar. Aside from the rev- 
erential feeling which naturally urges on the visitor to the Peerless 
Mountain, it affords one of the noblest and most delightful trips that can 
be taken in the Sunrise Land. Rising over twelve thousand feet from 
the plain at one sweep, the view from the top is the broadest and finest 
in all Japan. Not many years since, the entire distance from any 
point had to be made on foot, or seated in the mountain -chair borne by 
four sure-footed coolies. Now a three hours' ride by rail from Yokohama 



140 



THE FAR EAST. 



takes one to the village of Gotemba, at the foot of the mountain. If 
the tourist is able-bodied, he had better complete the journey on foot. 
Despite his extra exertions he will find this preferable to being carried, 
cramped up like a jack-knife half closed, in a kago, or that more pre- 
tentious but scarcely more comfortable Eastern palanquin, the norhnon} 

Above the farm-lands, which reach upward to a height of over fifteen 
hundred feet, is a wide belt of grassy moorland ; then a girdle of forest, 
stopping at six thousand feet, succeeds. Above this band of growth the 




FUJIYAMA. 



vegetation gradually becomes sparse and sickish in appearance, until 
finally the ancient paths wind in and out of rocky ravines, around or 
over huge patches of volcanic deposits. The kago-bearers go no farther 
than the upper rim of the forest, so that all climbers are then obliged to 
walk. 

The mountainside is dotted with rude huts built for the accommodation 
of pilgrims and tourists, who may get caught in one of the snow-storms 
which break over the scene, often with unexpected fury. On the summit, 

1 Originally the norimon was the carriage of the nobles, and the kago a basket for the con- 
veyance of the middle class. 



JAPAN. 141 

two and one-fourth miles above the sea, a stone hut has been raised, a 
tip-top house for the protection of the comers to that lofty, dreary, and 
desolate outlook, for such it is until one's immediate surroundings are 
forgotten by the charm of the view beyond. 

A short distance from this building is the sacred gateway leading to 
the crater, which is four hundred feet deep ; and if it has been inactive 
for almost two centuries, it has punctuated Japanese history with many 
lurid periods from time immemorial, and still furnishes proof of its 
living fires by the thin wreaths of sulphurous smoke rising from its 
secret chambers. In 1707, after a long interval of silence, it suddenly 
burst on its southern slope, burying the lowlands around deep in its 
molten debris, while clouds of ashes were wafted out to sea fifty miles 
away. Who stands in its awful presence cannot fail to realise, as he 
may never have before, his own feebleness and the power of that force 
at work beneath, which the next moment may send him miles into space. 

But the horrors of the pit are forgotten in the presence of the beautiful 
and the majestic. Below, stretch the corrugated crests of the inferior 
mountains, mere hills as viewed from this lofty eyrie, while farther away 
are the plains and valleys, the dark groves of fir and pine, the cultivated 
fields, glistening sheets of water, silvery rivers winding across the land- 
scape toward the sea, hamlets and towns embowered in gardens and way- 
side trees, the bays indenting the coast, and, beyond all these, the placid 
ocean. No view of this kind is without its charms, and the Peerless 
Mountain of Japan is not surpassed in this respect. 

It is natural that the aborigines of any country should hold their 
mountains in awe, and the Japanese believed that it would be contrary 
to the wishes of the goddess who was supposed to have her abode here 
for a woman to ascend this silver-crested pyramid. So it was left for 
a foreigner. Lady Parkes of England, to perform that feat. She was 
watched with awe, as she resolutely climbed the ascent. That was in 
1867, and many of the gentler sex have since made the arduous journey; 
so that the spell has been broken, and it is considered nothing remarkable 
to make the trip. 

While we rest from this " feast for the eyes," our Japanese friend sur- 
prises us with a fancy tale of legendary days, when the earth was younger 
and its inhabitants lived in closer communion with it. The magic of the 



142 



THE FAR EAST. 



narrator's impressive language, and the flash of his eye, as he dwells on 
the scenes pictured on his vivid mind, had become a mysterious part 
of his subject, which cannot be conveyed in the speech of tongue or 
pen any more than the laughter of the sunny waters or the song of 
the summer breeze can be imprisoned in the caverns of the imagination, 
to be freed at will with all their subtle expression. Shorn of this beauty, 
his story runs : 

Over two thousand ^ years ago, long ere the old faith was shaken, and 




SUWA-YAMA MOUNTAIN, KOBE. 



each pathway leading into the forests immemorial led under a massive 
torii to some sacred shrine, there dwelt in the heart of Old Japan a cer- 
tain good man named Visu. With him dwelt a faithful wife and two 
sons and two daughters, the sunlight of peace and happiness falling like 
the beams of the sacred sun over his home. His dwelling stood under 
the fringe of the forest, so that he looked out upon the broad plain of 
Suruga. 

In the summer he was accustomed to tend his growing crops, but with 

1286 B. c. 



JAPAN. 143 

tlie coming of winter, with its legions of wind and snow, he delighted 
to toil with his axe from sunrise to sunset under the warm tent of the 
pine. At nightfall he could be seen struggling homeward under a load 
of logs and branches of trees for the fire. Yisu was renowned as a story- 
teller, and around the cheerful blaze he loved to narrate to his family 
wonder tales of the deep greenwood and the fairies and elves that dwelt 
in its midst. The region to the north was wonderland to his listeners, so 
often did he repeat his strange stories. 

One night, as he was telling an especially interesting tale of the secrets 
of the forest, a strange noise startled the little group. As one and all 
listened, it grew louder and more terrific, until it seemed as if the whole 
interior of the earth was in convulsion. The cry of " Earthquake ! " rang 
out shrilly, but Yisu quieted his family somewhat by saying that had it 
been an earthquake it must needs have been sooner over. But, before he 
had finished speaking, the thunder was so loud that he could not make 
himself heard. He was frightened himself, and taking his smaller chil- 
dren in his arms, while his wife and the other children clung to his side, 
he ran out into the night. 

Even in his fright he noticed that the sky had taken on an unusual 
brilliancy. Orion's band of jewels hung low in the stellar realm, while 
the dipper's seven diamond points shone like a glittering finger-board in 
the sky. What amazed him most was the fact that every tip seemed 
focused toward the plain of Suruga and the forest beyond. Dazzled and 
bewildered, Yisu looked northward, where the way was shown him, and 
lo ! he saw a sight he never forgot. 

Where at sunset had stretched the vast plain, and beyond the green- 
woods, which had been his pride and boast, rose a mountain ! And such 
a mountain as he had never looked upon. It rose before him like a tower 
of fire, sending forth, far and wide, storms of stones and molten debris, 
while flaunting into the air banners of flames that lifted and spread until 
the very light of the sky turned into darkness. Yisu and his family 
watched the scene, terror-stricken, until another day, when they returned 
to their home. 

With the morning light they saw the black folds which had encircled 
the new-born mountain take on the bright and j)urple hues of the golden 
robes of the sun goddess, which told them that she was pleased at the 



144 



THE FAR EAST. 



appearance of the newcomer, which Visu saw was higher and mightier 
than any mountain he had ever seen, and he had penetrated far into the 
region of the northern hills. He named it Fujiyama, declaring that it 
was a jpeerless mountam, which distinction it has borne ever since. As 
the days passed, and the young giant grew calmer and milder in his 
appearance, Visu loved nothing better than to sit at eventide, with his 
day's toil done, and watch the rays of the setting sun, as they played 




SHIRAITO WATERFALL, FUJIYAMA. 

around the still smoking crest in purple streaks that lapped over into 
twilight. 

In time Visu learned strange facts concerning the birth of Fujiyama, 
his mountain, as he delighted to call it, and which he looked upon as a 
watchman of the plain. In the same hour that it had risen from the 
heart of the great greenwood, all the sacred hills of the Kyoto district had 
disappeared with a great hue and hubbub, and where they had stood 
quickly shone a tranquil sheet of water of a heavenly blue. It was 



JAPAN. 145 

shaped like the loved lute, and was named Biwa. The people knew now 
that the Peerless Mountain had travelled nearly two hundred miles under- 
ground in order to reach its abiding-place. 

Though he was the guardian of the great greenwood, and the keeper 
of its secrets, being on visiting terms with the Tengus, and often met on 
sacred grounds the gods and goddesses that ruled over the things and 
creatures primeval, it was fully a year later before Visu dared to leave 
his home so far as to penetrate into the deep forest skirting the foot of 
Fujiyama. Then, as he went farther and deeper into the trackless realm, 
he was more and more pleased with what he saw. It seemed to him the 
trees never had looked so friendly and beaming, the sun had not shone so 
bright, or the sky looked so blue. Thus he kept on and on, until finally 
he realised that he must turn back. He had barely decided to do this, 
when a merry little fox bounded across his pathway in front of him. 
Visu thought the bold little fellow looked at him with longing eyes as he 
sped past, and stopped within sight. Of all the denizens of the green- 
wood the fox is held in highest esteem. 

" It is a good omen to have a fox cross one's path," thought Visu. 
" Seeing he has not fled away, perhaps if I approach him he will pass 
in front of me again, and thus double my good fortune." 

With this intention in his mind, Visu advanced, until the wary fox 
started to run off, but so shaped his course that for the second time he 
ran before the delighted woodman. As he had stopped within sight now, 
Visu imagined he was still inviting him to come ahead, so he continued 
to move forward, when, to his increased joy, the fox crossed his way for 
the third time. In fact, this manoeuvring was repeated, until Master 
Keynard had actually crossed and recrossed the path of Visu ten times. 

" Never did such good promise of fortune fall to the lot of mortal 
before," thought the forester, " and I am sure my happiness is to be 
increased tenfold." 

But if so auspicious, this singular progress had, quite unconsciously to 
Visu, taken him so deeply into the woods that, when he came to look 
about him, he found he was so far that he would be puzzled to find his 
way out. As he stopped to look about and listen for some sound amid 
the solemn silence, he was pleased to catch the soft murmur of water 
gliding slowly along a smooth course, while there broke upon his ear the 



14G 



THE FAR EAST. 



louder and harsher sound which he took to be the gurglmg of a cascade, 
where foam-capped waters were tossed sharply from rock to rock as they 
hurried on their way. 

" The water always runs toward the plain," said Visu, half aloud, " and 
by following this stream I shall be able to find my Avay home." 

Acting upon this idea, parting the bamboo thicket just ahead of him, 
he stepped boldly into a little green, or clearing, in the forest, where the 




MOUNTAIN VIEW FROM MONASTERY GARDEN, NIKKO. 



morning dew still lingered on the pale green leaves like pearly drops, 
though the sun was sending his silvery shafts into the beautiful retreat. 
Visu thought it was the prettiest glade he had ever beheld, and he stopped 
to admire the scene, when a yet fairer sight caught his vision, and held 
him spellbound. 

Visu saw nothing less than two maidens sitting on the mossy carpet 
of the green, close beside the bank of the rivulet, playing go} They were 

^ A hoi^sehold game played by the Japanese, which resembles somewhat our chess or check- 
ers. It is played with boxes of little round buttons for checks, with the players seated around 



JAPAN. 



147 



the fairest, sweetest couple lie had ever seen, and so absorbed were they 
in the game that they played on in silence, except for the clicking of the 
checks and the singing of the running waters. The waving bamboos 
partly shaded their fair faces from the sunlight, but their features seemed 
lit by a light divine. As they had not noticed his appearance, Yisu con- 
tinued to watch the twain, as graceful of movement as the slender willow, 
and as fair of presence as the blossom of the cherry-tree. Entranced by 



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GIRLS WARMING THEMSELVES. 



fche lovely sight, he did not have the power to break the mystic spell, and, 
leaning on his axe helve, he watched and watched the motions of the beau- 
tiful players, scarcely daring to breathe lest he dispel the illusion. Oblivi- 
ous of him, the maids continued to move the chessmen as if their future 
existence depended upon their skill in playing. The gentle breeze stroked 
softly their long, dark hair, lifting it ever so lightly, until the sun's rays, 



a mat spread on the ground or floor. AVomen and children play it at home, while it is no un- 
common sight to see men stop in the midst of their labour, or journey, to spread a mat at their, 
feet and amuse themselves for hours at a time. 



148 



THE FAR EAST. 



grown bold with their opportunity, played hide and seek amid the dusky 
coils, and ran races along silken roads. A strange power seemed to bind 
the enraptured watcher, its delights growing with its strength ; time and 
again he closed his eyes to reopen them upon the same scene : the green 
with its moss mat, the pearl-drops on the bamboos, the sweet maids play- 
ing, as if they never intended to stop, in silence and beautiful contentment. 
At last, when it seemed to Visu that it was possible he had fallen asleep 
and dreamed it all, be rallied enough to bestir his cramped limbs. The 




COUNTRY ROAD. 



action brought a low cry of pain to his lips, and he found himself so sore 
and stiff in his joints that he could scarcely move. He looked for the 
fair players, to find to his surprise that they were gone. 

" Strange they should have slipped away before my eyes, without my 
seeing them," he thought. " I must hasten home and tell those there of 
the rare sight I have seen in the heart of the great greenwood." 

Leaning heavily on his axe helve, as he started to move away, the wood 
crumbled from under him, and he fell to the ground. So stiff were his 
knees, and there Avere so many aches and pains in his joints, that it was 
several minutes before he could regain his feet. He saw to his further 



JAPAN. 



149 



amazement that his hair reached far down over his shoulders, while his 
beard hung from his chin wide and flowing. Both, until now, black as 
the raven's wing, were white as the snow on Fujiyama's lofty crest ! 

Not knowing what this all meant, well might he be frightened, and he 
hobbled homeward with what haste he could. But it was many hours 
later when the poor, bewildered woodman came to a hut standing near 




JAPANESE PHYSICIAN. 



the border of the forest and looking out upon the plain. He remembered 
it as his home, though strange children were playing around the door, and 
unfamiliar voices came from within. 

" There must be visitors at home," he decided in his mind, as he stepped 
inside, to be greeted with the decorous reception the Japanese always 
accord strangers. 

" I am looking for my wife and children," he said. " I left them, a 
short time since, for a ramble in the greenwood. Perhaps they have got 
anxious, and gone in search of me. If so, prithee make haste and inform 
them of my safe return. Strange to say, I am fatigued over my walk, 
though it has not been overlong." 

They looked upon him with a wonder they could not entirely conceal. 



250 THE FAR EAST. ^ 

and after listening to his speech the man shook his head. When Visu 
insisted that this was his home, he protested, saying that his father, and 
his father's fathers, had lived there before him. Surely this hoary-headed 
stranger, clothed in tatters, was one bereft of his reason, and he pitied 
him. Then the dazed woodman told his name, when the other finally 
recalled that an ancestor had been named Visu, and that he had been a 
man of considerable renown, who, when tired of the earth, had sought 
rest in the fastness of the forest that he had loved so well. But he had 
served his family ill by going away without imparting his intention. 

" Nay, brother ! " cried Visu, '^ now you wrong an innocent man. I am 
that woodman, and if I have been gone overlong it was no fault of mine. 
Tell me where I may find my wife, that I may obtain her forgiveness. 
She was ever indulgent, and I promise never again to pass within the 
magic circle of the mountain green." 

" Thy wife," replied the other, looking incredulous, " if thou art, as 
thou cl^imest, Visu, has slept with the faithful for six generations. Those 
you look u23on here are descendants of her children, — hers and Visu's." 

Slowly and painfully it dawned upon the returned woodman that while 
he had tarried in the forest, watching the beautiful maidens playing go 
in the deep greenwood, his wife, his children, and his children's children, 
had lived their natural spans of life and departed. He realised that he 
had mysteriously fallen out of the race run to the grave by his generation, 
and been left a lonely old man in a lonely world. He was taken in and 
cared for most kindly, but his heart was no longer light. His remaining 
days on earth were passed in making pious pilgrimages to Fujiyama, 
and in looking for the fair players of go. Once he fancied he caught a 
gleam of the little fox who had allured him into their court, but he never 
saw the delusive maids. Upon his death, Visu was fittingly sainted, and 
he has ever since been worshipped as a deity of prosperity. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

REGION OF THE GREAT EARTHQUAKE. 

DESCENDING from Fujiyama and regaining the route to Kyoto, we 
notice all along the way a fine view of the country at our feet. 
The view at Sano is especially fine, the sacred mountains affording 
a magnificent background, while the vista in front is one of the fairest 
landscapes in Japan, with a broad belt of glistening water beyond. Dur- 
ing the afternoon w^e pass the scene of that charming tale from Japanese 
folk-lore, " The Robe of Feathers," which our guide stops to relate. 

Many years ago, as all legends begin, some fishermen passing the 
shore here, one day, saw a beautiful robe made of feathers from some 
strange bird hanging upon the trees that dipped their arms into the 
seaside. The wondering men, after stopping a moment to admire the 
magnificent object, showed their honesty by passing on without offering 
to touch the robe, which they concluded belonged to some woman of the 
nobility, who had perhaps come here to bathe in the clear tide. 

A little later a single fisherman, landing on the shore near by, dis- 
covered the robe, and, less scrupulous than the others, immediately 
took possession of it. As he was making away with it in high pleasure, 
a most beautiful maiden appeared on the scene, coming from he knew 
not whence. With tears in her lovely blue eyes, unused to weeping, and 
in a voice of the sweetness of the wild dove, she told him the robe was 
hers. Then he laughed at her, declaring that having it in his possession 
made it his. 

She continued to plead with him, saying that without it she could not 
return to her home in the sky. He soon learned that she was one of 
many attendants that waited upon the " thirty monarchs " that ruled 
the moon. This only made him more obdurate, while he was fascinated 
by her loveliness. So he hesitated in rowing away, though he refused 
to give up his prize. To hesitate in his case meant final surrender, for 
hinting to him of the gay life of the immortal dancers, he consented to- 

151 



152 



THE FAR EAST. 



let her put on the robe long enough to dance for hhn one of the wonder- 
ful dreams^ of fantslsy enacted beyond the pale of mortals. It was the 
agreement that he should have the robe, when she w^as done dancing, by 
commg to her for it. The narrator then proceeds to picture, in language 
and gesture which cannot be translated, the bewildering mazes and fan- 
tastic figures she performed on the sun-kissed sands, while music from 
ethereal flutes made light the movements of the fair}' maid, and sweets 
from Elysian bowers made fragrant the smnmer air. Gradually he grew 




<;n;L> i>axcixg. 



dizzy from watching, and as she finished he reached to grasp the feather 
robe. At that moment a breeze from the sea spread out the precious 
garment like the wings of a bird, and to his amazement she was wafted 
upward, the last note of the song dying away as she disappeared in the 
blue space overhead. 

One of the noted places passed on this route is the city of Shidzuoka, 
situated on an open plain fifteen miles from the seashore, and especially 
honoured in being the home of the '^ last of the tycoons." This Shogun 
Keiki, having been shorn of his royal powers, retired to this city in 
1868, where he lived the life of a simple country gentleman of leisure. 



JAPAN. 153 

spending his time in fishing and hawking. Japan, Europe, and America, 
owe more to him than they will ever acknowledge, as it was mainly due 
to him that the latter government (by the term America we mean the 
United States in their broad signification), through its representative, 
Commodore Perry, succeeded in opening intercourse with this Robinson 
Crusoe of nations. The real emperor maintaining his official seclusion at 
Kyoto, this shogun, as his agent, received the strange visitors, and began 
negotiations with the new power. In this correspondence he was desig- 
nated as tai-kim, or tycoon, and as such his name stands in an honoured 
position in history. 

Beyond this place an iron bridge fully a mile in length spans a river, 
which, except for a brief while in spring, is a narrow, dejected stream. 
It is but an example of rivers in Japan. Streams that for eleven months 
out of the year are dried up affairs, that seem to be withering to nothing, 
suddenly spring from their beds as the snow melts from the mountains 
and deluge the country far and wide. 

The country along this coast for a hundred miles is a vast rice-field, 
made up of numberless patches devoted to this crop. The division of 
these little plots, of a quarter of an acre in area, can always be defined 
by the grass-tufted ridges. A horse attached to a plow of antique design, 
and with a tooth that turns up a furrow three feet in width, is the means 
of stirring the sod. But rice culture must be a very disagreeable occu- 
pation, as the weeding and resetting have to be done in mud and water 
knee-deep. The mud of Japan is the muddiest kind of mud, too. Much 
of this work is done by women, and it is no uncommon sight to see 
mothers, with infants strapped upon their backs, working day after day 
in the rice-swamps. Forty bushels of rice to an acre is considered a fair 
yield. The main article of diet for these workers is millet, wheat, or 
barley, dried fish, and seaweed. 

Though we did not pass the marble monument erected to mark the sad 
incident, we are reminded of the fate of the French M. M. steamer Ml, 
in the Yoshida Bay, off the town of Irima, on the night of the 20th of 
March, 1874. This steamer had on board 111 persons, and the articles 
Japan had sent for exhibition at Vienna. The night was dark, the tide 
running high, and her engine getting out of order, the steamer ran upon 
a rock and sank. Only four persons escaped. 



154 



THE FAR EAST. 



One of the finest reminders of auld lang syne is the city of Nagoya, 
situated at the head of Owari Gulf, with a castle and moat of the days 
of feudalism well preserved. No tourist fails to visit what was once the 
home of the son of lyeyasu, built in 1610. Of late years it has been 
taken for military purposes, and the broad strip of plain between the outer 
and inner moats has been converted into a parade-ground and a barracks. 
The moats are dry now, and along them deer roam, amid the surround- 
ings of Avar, in peace. The castle is a five-storied stone pagoda, the roof 



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THRESHING RICE. 



surmounted by two golden dolphins eight feet in height and considered to 
be worth two hundred thousand dollars. A wide view of the country can 
be had from the top of this pagoda, while its glittering ornaments are 
prominent objects from all parts of the city. 

An entrance through a richly ornamented gateway of two stories 
admits one into the great courtyard of the temple of Higashi Hongwanji. 
The walls and ceiling of this temple are rich in their carvings. Among 
the special objects of interest is pointed out a stone with the imprint of 
Buddha's huge foot. As a matter of uniformity it ought to be large. 



JAPAN. 



155 



as it is claimed he stood sixteen feet in height. This place is noted for 
its five hundred images of the followers of this religious founder, painted 
in bright colours, but no two of the same tint. They are about two feet 
in height, and show every emotion in their grotesque features, from gay 
to grave, sublime to ridiculous. 

A tour of the streets shows the workmen of various classes busy at 
their toil. If at first their movements and methods seem clumsy and 
awkward, we are soon forced to acknowledge that there is a certain ease 




CAlil'EXTEKS. 



and skill in their workmanship that is hard to equal. In the lightness of 
touch, the rapidity of motion, and the nicety of completion, they excel any 
other race. We see proof of this until we are convinced. Nothing is 
left unfinished, or with a lack of proper polish. The carpenter is able to 
build a house with fewer pins or nails than we use, because he fits his 
tenons to mortises with a closeness that makes the joints water-tight. 
Japanese workmen use their feet as extra hands, and the great toe rivals 
the thumb in usefulness. 

Another place, located on one of the sounds of Owari Gulf, which 



156 THE FAR EAST. 

indents the island so that its width is narrowed to less than seventy- 
miles, is the village noted as holding the revered shrine of Ise, erected on 
the sacred spot where the early ancestor of the emperor first set foot on 
Dai Nippon. If we are to follow tradition, the tenshi, as his loyal people 
love best to know him, is a direct descendant from Ama-ga-terasu, the 
sun-god, who came down to the earth in primeval days to dwell for a 
time in what is now the province of Ise. This town of itself is an attract- 
ive spot, embowered in umbrageous groves, and surrounded by a beautiful 
landscape of hillocks and valleys. 

The Uji Province, noted for its tea-raising since an early day, lies 
between Ise and Kyoto on the west. A tea plantation, consisting of acres 
of evergreen bushes, from two to three feet in height, is one of the pret- 
tiest sights of this region. Except the better grade of tea, the plants are 
left exposed to the rays of the sun, but those that produce the highest 
qualities are covered with mats thrown over bamboo frames. The soil 
and climate of this locality combine to make the cultivation of this herb 
particularly successful. Throughout this large district every swell of 
land, be it hill or mound, is terraced and planted with the tea-shrub, 
which looks at first sight like the myrtle. It bears a yellow and white 
blossom, resembling the wild camelia. It is from this region the tea 
comes which we get in the United States. 

North of Nagoya, we pass through the central region of the great earth- 
quake of 1891, and the evidence of its awful visitation is still to be seen. 
Before reaching Gifu, a considerable ascent is made with Ibukiyama frown- 
ing down upon us, with its bare sides rising over f pur thousand feet into 
mid-air. Gifu, situated at the angle of the railroad threading this coun- 
try, suffered horribly from the earthquake just mentioned, not less than 
ten thousand people losing their lives, while twice that number were 
made destitute. 

Fishing with cormorants, which seems to be the principal vocation of 
the people here, has served to give the place world-wide notoriety. The 
cormorant, which figures so prominently in this sport, belongs to the web- 
footed species of birds, of the migratory order, and lives on fish, which it 
catches with remarkable dexterity, and devours with an equal voracity. 
It is caught by the Japanese when, as a young bird, it lingers on the coast 
of Owari Gulf on its migration southward from its summer haunts on the 



JAPAN. 



157 



northern shores of Hokkaido. This difficult part of the work is usually 
done by placing a wooden image of the bird in a conspicuous position, 
partially covered with leaves, and generously sprinkled with bird-lime. 
The young captive then has to be given a course of training for future 
usefulness. This requires great tact and patience on the part of the 
owner, and the expense of keeping the cormorant through the winter, 
when no fishing is done, is considerable. There are cases where the owner 




JAPANESE TEA TRADER. 



actually deprived himself of needed food in order to keep his prize in good 
shape for the summer season's fishing. 

Cormorant fishing is generally done by a party of fishermen making up 
a series of boats, with four men to each boat. The chief or leader of each 
stations himself in the bow, and has under his management at least 
twelve birds, and sometimes as many as eighteen. The way he and his 
feathered helpers ply their trade is what has given this locality its wide- 
spread reputation for this peculiar employment. This man is distin- 



158 



THE FAR EAST. 



guislied by his hat from a second fisherman in the boat, who handles four 
birds. A third person, seated in the stern, tends strictly to navigating 
the boat, while the fourth, seated in the forepart, keeps up an incessant 
noise by striking bamboo sticks together, and in shouting to encourage 
the birds. He is called kako, and is quite as indispensable as the others. 

Each cormorant has had a metal ring placed around its neck, fitting 
close enough to prevent it from swallowing the larger fish, and suffi- 




FISHING WITH CORMORANTS. 



ciently loose to allow the small ones to pass down its throat. A sort of 
harness is rigged about the body, to lower and lift the cormorant at the 
will of its master. This contrivance is somewhat after the style of a 
shawl-strap, a piece of whalebone answering for the handle on its back, 
while a stout cord is fastened to this to keep the bird from straying too 
far, and to guide its movem-ents. This is made of spruce fibre, and is 
usually about a dozen feet in length. 

The details carefully arranged, the steersman allows the boat to drift 
down the river, its course lighted by rows of torches on each side, for 



JAPAN. 159 

cormorant fishing is always done at night. Upon reaching the fishing- 
ground the master lowers one after another of his birds into the water ; 
and when the entire lot has been let down, he gathers the reins in his 
left hand, keeping his right for the recapture of the cormorant and 
removal of fish as often as the occasion demands. He in control of the 
four birds follows the example of the leader, and the sport opens in 
earnest. The fish are attracted toward the boat by the torchlights, and 
the birds begin to gorge themselves with members of the finny tribe. 
The creatures that seemed so clumsy on land dart hither and thither with 
astonishing swiftness, diving whenever they catch sight of a fish. These 
feathered fishers are managed by the fishermen with remarkable skill, 
and a lively time ensues. The moment one of the cormorants has filled 
its capacious mouth, it has to be pulled in and disgorged, when it returns 
to the scene with renewed zest. It has brought in perhaps half a dozen 
good fish, and in an hour it will catch from a hundred to a hundred and 
fifty. As soon as the catch is considered sufficiently large, the run is 
made back to Gifu, with the birds resting in rows in the boat. 

The willingness and intelligence with which these birds enter into the 
work is surprising. One of each set, usually the oldest, an old, grizzled 
warrior, is leader, and he goes by the name of ichi, or captain. The oth- 
ers, arranged in numbers according to their age and size, are put into the 
water in regular order, the ichi last, being taken out first. So clearly do 
the creatures^ understand this rule, that, if by mistake or intention it is 
broken, there is a rumpus at once. 



CHAPTER XYII. 

ALONG THE INLAND SEA. 

THE Tokaido is the main artery of Hondo, running from the heart 
of Japan, and through it courses the life-current of the empire. 
It runs through the most populous cities, and the richest lands for 
agriculture. It is along this route that the spirit of modern enterprise, 
as well as ancient glory, has been most potent in shaping the afeirs of 
the realm, and with this is connected the better part of its history. 

Leaving Gifu, we soon after reach the shore of that sheet of water 
whose beauty and legendary origin we have already heard told in glowing 
language. It is really the lake of Omi, though more often called Biwa, on 
account of its resemblance to a Chinese guitar. Two small steamers now 
ply between two towns on its historic shores, Otsu and Hikone, the latter 
a castled city on the north end. Not far from here is that notable place 
on the west shore of Hondo, Fukui, the " well of blessing." Biwa is the 
only lake of any size in Japan, and its setting is worthy of the gem. It 
lies only 340 feet above the Inland Sea, and has a length of nearly forty 
miles. 

We are now on the direct route to Kyoto. The country is compara- 
tively level. On our left we see series after series of rice-plantations, 
with the labourers bending over their tasks completely hidden under their 
huge hats. On the road we meet many Japanese farmers, either going 
to market or returning. They carry their produce, or the product of 
manufacture, suspended from long poles, nicely balanced on their shoul- 
ders. Some of the loads thus carried are enormous. Once we overtook 
what looked like a huge pile of baskets moving slowly along the highway. 
A closer inspection disclosed a man under the load. Again we met 
another, evidently moving, for he was bowed beneath a load of mats and 
household utensils. ^ 

We are still on the line of the railroad, and at Kusatsa we take the 
train for Kobe on the shore of the Gulf of Osaka. This will take us 

160 



JAPAN. 



161 



through the ancient capital, but we shall not stop there to look around, as 
we purpose to finish our tour of picturesque Japan with a voyage down 
the Inland Sea to Nagasaki. Later, with ample leisure, we will return to 
note the many interesting scenes and history of this renowned " city of 
peace," the soul of ancient Japan. We shall pass through another city 
of even more modern interest, Osaka, which shall occupy its share of 
attention at the proper time. 




RIVER VIEW, NAGASAKI. 



We follow quite closely the course of the river Yodo, which flows 
leisurely between banks covered with reeds, and through groves of firs 
and bamboos, its margins dotted with groups of thatched dwellings. It 
was in this region that the Jesuits and Franciscans from Manila, with 
more zeal than prudence, went from hamlet to hamlet, more than two 
hundred years ago, in their vain attempt to introduce Christianity into 
this country. Their pathetic fates have been described in our treatise on 
the Philippines. This stream is a favourite haunt for the stork, the 
noble white heron, and the less admired hawk. 



162 THE FAR EAST. 

In more recent time this territory has been the battle-ground of the 
powers contending for the supremacy of the empire. In 1868, under the 
shadows of Yamazaki, near the village of Hashimoto, which means 
" foot of the bridge," the army of the Tokugawa was driven in disorder 
to Osaka by the forces of the emperor. Japan has been so drenched in 
blood that it would seem as if her fountains must well forth a crimson 
current, and the sap of her trees run red to the earth. But Mother 
Nature, who sets about at once to heal the scars made upon her features, 
forgets not more quickly than her children, and everywhere a spirit of 
peace prevails. The great aim of Japan is not to parade her sorrows, 
but to conceal them ; not to sound her triumphs, but to silence them 
under the spell of merriment. 

Scarcely thirty years ago the streets of Kobe were furrows in the sand, 
and the sites of the numerous dwellings plots of the same white earth. 
This town is a living proof of the thrift of an Occidental plant placed 
in Oriental soil. Across the harbour, which is called from ancient faith 
the " Gate of God," stands its opposite, in more respects than one, Hiogo, 
of olden glory. This was founded in the days of Taira triumphs, and, 
as its name indicates, was an arsenal. It wears now a very peaceful look. 
These two towns, presenting such a vivid picture of ancient and modern 
influences, are landlocked by green-walled hills. This port was the first 
visited by the Pacific steamers running between Yokohama and Hongkong. 
The trip from Yokohama here is made in twenty-four hours, or six hours 
longer than by rail. The cost by cars is $10.74 for first-class, and $7.16 
for second-class. 

Among the spots of 'historic interest are the tomb of Kiyomori, and at 
Minato, near by, a temple reared to the memory of one of Japan's heroes, 
Kusunoki Masashighe, the patriot who welcomed death rather than 
disloyalty to his country. 

A place frequented by visitors to Kobe is the Men-daki, or Female Fall, 
popular as a summer resort. This is considered as the especial bathing- 
place for women, while higher up the mountain is the On-daki, or 
Male Fall, where men and boys are supposed to hold dominion. The 
height of the first fall is a little less than fifty feet, while the water of 
the latter drops over a precipice over eighty feet high. The first is the 
prettier spot, but the latter is one of wild surroundings. Considered 



JAPAN. 



li)3 



together, they are known as the Nunobiki Falls. Kobe was opened to 
foreign trade in 1868. 

Sixteen miles inland from Kobe is situated that mountain ham.let, 
Arima, where a large percentage of the bamboo baskets for the foreign 
market are manufactured. This town is noted also for its medicinal 
springs, where the sufferers from rheumatic ills flock the year around. 
It is a romantic spot set in picturesque surroundings. 




A WATERFALL AT KOBl^. 

It is four hundred miles in round numbers from Kob6 to Nagasaki, the 
brightest, fairest, grandest water tour to be taken in Japan. The Inland 
Sea is the choicest bit of water snatched from old ocean, and hemmed in 
by shores that are an ideal of poetic and romantic scenery. Isles of 
enchantment are scattered all along the way, while the steamer, a floating 
island with a dense population, drifts dreamily past sleepy hamlets and 
wide-awake towns, productive plains and terraced hills, reedy moors and 
glistening rivers, ancient castles and impressive temples, evergreen forests 
and sunny mountain slopes, day after day. 



164 



THE FAR EAST. 



This charming body of water, every part of which holds some tale of 
olden chivalry and modern romance of warlike deeds, is connected with 
the Pacific Ocean on the east by the Channel of Kii, and to the Sea of 
Japan on the west by the Straits of Shimonoseki, which has been aptly 
termed the Gibraltar of Japan. Its length is about 250 miles, while its 
breadth varies from narrows less than five miles in width to broad belts 
of thirty miles' expanse. It has an actual seaboard of 720 miles, with 
many fine harbours, towns of active trade, and castled cities. It is said 




A PLEASURE BOAT. 



to have an island for every day in the year. There are certainly enough 
of them for the comfort of the navigator. 

The name by which this Eastern Mediterranean is known to-day seems 
to have originated with foreigners. The Japanese designated it as Seto 
TJchi, but were accustomed to give it as many as six names, all taken 
/:rom the nada, or provinces, that bordered it at different parts. This 
was according to the prevailing method of the Japanese prior to the 
coming of the foreigners. Instead of giving a general name to a river, 
they would give the stream as many different local designations as it 
passed through districts. What was true of the rivers applied with equal 



JAPAN. 165 

force to all other natural features of the islands. In fact, the island of 
Hondo was without a name for centuries, while Shikoku and Kyushu 
awaited a christening by strangers. 

The tourist who has seen everywhere evidence of the work of the deso- 
lating volcano, covering fertile plains with ashes and pumice-stone until 
they are capable of bearing nothing better than bamboo grass and the 
stunted scrub, realises more than ever, amid these picturesque scenes and 
charming sea views, that Japan is not a land blessed superficially with a 
richness of earth. It is true no spot of arable soil, whether surrounded by 
some volcanic debris, or by the rocks of some precipitous hillside or sea- 
girt isle, has escaped the mattock of the industrious inhabitant, who has 
snatched a precarious living where one less frugal must have starved. No 
cove, however bleak or sheltered, but affords a hamlet of people, who 
manage, somehow, by sea or soil, to eke out a cheerful existence. This 
state of things may be better understood by the fact that nearly nine- 
tenths of the territory of Japan at present yields no part in the supply of 
food for its inhabitants. The percentage of area in cultivation is slowly 
but steadily increasing, however, where that great modern king of develop- 
ment, the iron horse, penetrates. As the remote regions are thus brought 
within reach of the markets, new land in the interior fastness is beins: 
taken up. ♦ 

By this it is not to be supposed that Japan is really a country of 
poverty, any more than that its people lack the finer tastes and apprecia- 
tion of the better things of life. We have shown that where there is a 
paucity of flowers, they have a love and trained taste for them of the 
highest order, which is prodigal in its display. If the Japanese show an 
utter lack of business display about their centres of trade, if their dwell- 
ings are flimsy, wooden structures with inner walls of paper, if they 
hover over charcoal braziers instead of coal or wood fires, if at night their 
heads repose on blocks of wood rather than pillows of feathers, it must 
not be concluded that they do this through ignorance or lack of culture, 
or even that they consider it an indication of poverty. Naturally the 
stranger to this idea of life, who enters one of these primitive homes for 
the first time, is surprised at the complete absence of what he considers 
necessary to the comforts of a home. The house that has no furniture, 
not even the common contrivance of a chair, none of the appliances of ordi- 



166 



THE FAR EAST. 



nary comfort^ no pictures on the walls, no books on the tables, — because 
there are no tables, — no bric-a-brac or any movable ornament ; the room 
where he must eat his dinner from the floor, and sleep on the same plane, 
and whose walls are silently folded away in the morning, must seem to 
the stranger barren and inartistic. Gradually he comes to understand 
that this very simplicity denotes a superior taste, and an artless education 
of which he has known nothing, a finer conception of true art because more 
closely concealed under an exterior of studied plainness. Nowhere does 




JAPANESE BEDCHAMBER. 



the tourist find picturesque cottages embowered in sweet-scented flowers 
of many-hued foliage, but everywhere the plain dwelling; the love of 
flowers in the heart, the absence of flowers in the surroundings ; the love 
of the beautiful in the soul, the modest concealment of this in the dwell- 
ing — the body. 

The naval station of Hiroshima is reached, and the sacred island of 
Miyajima is pointed out by our Japanese friends, and we look upon shores 
lined with stone lanterns and wistaria-entangled groves, where deer roam 
at will. A prominent feature is a torii, built so far out into the water 
that, at high tide, it is cut off from the land. We are told that there has 



JAPAN. 



167 



never been a birth or death in this fairy-land, though it is inhabited. 
Temple Island is the definition of its name, but the Japanese love best to 
call it " the enchanted isle of Princess Sayori." This hints of romance, 
and we are prepared to expect what follows. 

Shintoism still prevails here, and formerly devotions were paid to 
the spirits of the mountains ; but this was changed when a lovely god- 
dess, like Aphrodite of Cyprus, sprang from the sea to receive the homage 




VIEW OF MIYAJniA. 



of the people in place of the invisible beings of yore. The sailors look 
upon this divinity as their especial protectress, and this veneration is 
held all over the island empire. Everywhere here, gentleness is supposed 
to be an attribute of the goddess, so that beautiful tame deer wander 
where they will unmolested, and put their soft noses into the hands of 
strangers, asking for their caress or for food. Lest this peacefulness be 
disturbed, dogs are not permitted to live in this Eden. A queerer custom 
is not to let any death occur here, and the dying are kindly and anxiously, 
ferried over to the mainland to breathe their last, for fear the hallowed 



168 THE FAR EAST. 

spot may be touclied by sorrow. On the other hand, no hfe is allowed to 
begin its solemn journey in this sacred precinct, for fear it may bring 
struggles and hardships. 

Sayori is honoured with three temples of great beauty, appearing to 
rest at high tide upon the bosom of the placid sea. The galleries of these 
notable structures are supported by columns standing on three islets, and 
the water nearly overflows them and flows under the arches. The first 




BLUFF, YOKOHAMA. 



shrine is said to have been built in the seventh century, but the distinc- 
tion belonging to it dates from 1156, when Taira Kiyomori won that 
victory over his enemies which gained him the throne beyond dispute. 
As he came to rise to the pinnacle of his greatness he remembered his 
scene of triumph here, and did much to enhance the attractions of the 
place. 

Many chapters might be written upon the beauty and pleasure of this 
trip on the Inland Sea, until at Shimonoseki the steamer passes the last 
narrow gateway, and steams majestically out into the open ocean. The 



JAPAN. 169 

course from this point, however, is close in to the shore dotted with 
villages, and set with a background of terraced landscape. The noted 
Arched Rock is seen and admired, the long, narrow bay leading to the fine 
harbour of that San Francisco of the Far East is reached, and we are at 
Nagasaki. 

We find this one of the busiest places we have seen. Men-of-war lie 
at anchor surrounded by lesser craft, not forgetting the gondolas of Japan, 
the sampans, which seem everywhere present. On account of the frequent 
rains, their cabins are covered. The town has many places of interest to 
the sightseer. It has its great temple, the O'Suwa, surrounded by a beau- 
tiful public park. As at Yokohama, foreign residents choose their building 
sites on a hill, which commands a wide view of the city. A little removed 
from the town are the hot springs, which call a generous number of tour- 
ists hither. There are quaint villages lying under the dust and rust of 
ages scattered along the coast ; and there is that historic castle of 
Kumamoto, which we must not fail to see. In the midst of our attempt 
to decide which way to turn first, the steamer's whistle blows, and we 
know that the journey to China is resumed. Let them keep on who will, 
we will give a week to this vicinity, and then return, most of the way by 
rail, to ancient Kyoto. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

THE HEART OF JAPAN. 

IN Kyoto, the Moscow of Japan, one treads on hallowed ground. To 
her credit belong unnumbered sacred shrines, the beautiful fulfilment 
of Japanese art, centuries of classic memories, and a thousand years 
of imperial life. This ancient capital, with a population not far from 
three hundred thousand, has, to a less extent than most Japanese cities, 
become the victim of the antagonistic ideas of conflicting ages. The seat 
of Eastern imperialism for 1,074 years, and during three centuries the 
stronghold of '•'Hhe Tokugawa regents," it might be expected to possess 
the grandeur and magnificence supposed to be a part of an ancient and 
imperial capital. Kyoto does not hold these attractions, though she 
atones for this lack in oth^r ways. 

The explanation for this absence of royal splendours is found, in part, 
in the fact that the emperor was not the real ruler, the administrative 
power being actually held by the regent, or shogun, and his followers, the 
feudal chiefs who held the greater amount of wealth. The nobles of 
the emperor, with lineages running back to kingly ancestors, on the 
other hand, were comparatively poor, and their abodes were marvels of 
modesty and plainness. The former resided in the Eastern capital, 
Tokyo, while the latter lived in the Western capital, Sai-kyo, or Kyoto. 
Here even the simplicity of the imperial castle was noticeable. A 
few decorations from the brush of some gifted painter relieved the bare- 
ness of its walls, and the timbers were of fine grain without knots, — this 
is all that can be said regarding royal display. 

Kyoto became the capital in 794 A. D., and the plan for the new city, 
where the emperor was expected to be absolute, was one upon which all 
historians delight" to dwell in glowing language. It was laid out with 
streets running with particular precision in regard to the points of the 
compass, until a network of communication was formed that was a marvel 
of perspicuity. At the divergence of these lines, a citadel, becoming the 

170 



JAPAN. 



171 



proposed splendour of the capital, was built. The buildings that followed 
must have been grand for those remote times, and there is little doubt of 
the refining civilisation which existed then. But the power of the rulers 
centred here soon began to weaken, and that arch-enemy to the accumula- 
tion of wealth, fire, stepped in, time and again, to destroy the structures 
on street after street. Each time that new buildings were raised to take 
the place of those destroyed, they were smaller and cheaper than those 
before them. Feudalism was expanding and strengthening, the revenues 




KYOTO FROM MAliUYAMA. 



of the imperial city were being turned into another channel, and thia 
result was inevitable. The emperor and his nobles were compelled to set 
this example, and the citizens could not do otherwise than follow. So 
Kyoto grew poorer and poorer, weaker and weaker, the faithful people 
bowing meekly to the will of their impoverished chiefs. While the sub- 
stance of it all went to Tokyo, the greatness and grandeur of the actual 
capital became a shadow. 

Seventy-seven emperors held their courts in Kyoto, each succeeding 
generation showing diminishing pomp and pageantry, it is true, but with 
no diminution of grace paid to them by their followers. In the course of 



172 



THE FAR EAST. 



so long a period of time, many changes must have been made in the gen- 
eral appearance of the city, and yet the original outlines of its plan are to 
be seen now. The scheme was suggested by Nara, with certain modifica- 
tions borrowed from the Tang dynasty in China. It had the form of a 
rectangle, and was surrounded by moats and palisades. The imperial 
palace, with its citadel, halls, and auxiliaries, standing in the north sec- 
tion, was gained by a main gate on the south, which opened upon a long 
broad street (280 feet in width) running north and south through the city, 
and cutting it into two equal parts. The division on the east was known 




A GARDEX, KYOTO. 



as Sakyo, or " left metropolis ; " that on the west as Ukyo, or " right 
metropolis." Taken together, the two parts were divided into nine dis- 
tricts, separated from each other b}^ wide streets, varj'ing in width from 
eighty to 170 feet. These passed through the city east and west, and 
were numbered, instead of being named, from one to nine, as ichi-jo, one ; 
ni-jo, two ; saii-jo, three, and so on. These names, or significations, are 
retained to this day. 

As would be naturally expected where the residences of the nobility 
presented a marked simplicity, the dwellings of the common class were 
low, and devoid of ornamentation. This gave a monotonous and inartistic 



JAPAN. 173 

frontage, though the rear was relieved by that happy gift of the people 
of converting bare grounds into fantastic gardens. The roofs of the 
houses, as a rule, were covered with rived shingles, though occasionally 
tiles of a slate colour were used. The palace was conspicuous by its 
green roof, made so by tiles imported expressly from China at great 
expense. 

The difference between Kyoto and Tokyo is now easily distinguished. 
The latter has its dissimilar parts : its official and commercial Tokyo, 
the pomp and glory of its nobihty, the poverty and plainness of the 
common people. It was so in the days of feudalism ; it is so to-day ; only 
the simple, meagre huts of the reedy moors are being slowly replaced by 
better dwellings. On the other hand, Kyoto stands to-day, as it did when 
royalty and its willing subjects associated in the fraternal bonds of univer- 
sal brotherhood, as a happy example of an ideal capital of the Land of the 
Gods. Here we see by the cosmopolitan idea of tlie plan of the city, and 
the respectful attention given to the abodes of the common class, the 
capital of a nation rather than the stronghold of a military head. If 
the first appearance of the streets was that of sombre austerity, there 
was no dwelling so poor which was not flanked by a miniature park 
beautified with tiny hills terraced with grassy slopes, dwarf forests, and 
babbling waterfalls. There still remains evidence of the high quality of 
the education and civilisation of Japan as disseminated here under 
Emperor Kwammu a century before England had become a nation under 
Alfred the Great, and a thousand years before Columbus discovered the 
Western world. 

Unlike some of the other Japanese cities, Kyoto is not yet dominated 
by the industrial arts, and if the streets are filled to a certain extent 
with the bustle and confusion of modern manufacture, there is still to be 
seen many an artist following his decorative craft after the manner of 
old, in imitation of nature, from leaves and flowers that overhang the 
windows of his workshop. The city used to be in constant dread of 
volcanic eruptions, but this fear is gradually dying out. It has now been 
sixty-five years since it last felt the shock of the internal forces. 

Kyoto lies on a productive plain, embowered by mountain ranges that 
are covered with the deep greenwood of a semi tropical clime. As well 
as being the centre of an agricultural district and the home market for 



174 



THE FAR EAST. 



the tea of the Uji country, it is famous for its manufactures of silken 
goods, its porcelain wares, brocades, and embroideries. In yet another 
direction it is noted as being on a large scale what Nikko is on a smaller, 
the " city of temples," holding within its circuit twenty-five hundred 
Shinto shrines, and thirty-five hundred temples dedicated to Buddha. 

The bronze Buddha of Kamakura, the finest work of its kind in Japan, 
has been described, but here in Kyoto is to be seen the largest image of 




VIEW XEAH KYOTO. 



that god, though it is made of wood and consists of head and shoulders 
only. But these parts are of such enormous dimensions that the top 
reaches into the temple loft. The image is gilded, and made hollow, 
numerous beams and cross-timbers keeping it in position. Formerly a 
bronze statue occupied the place, but both fire and earthquake seemed to 
have especial grudges against it. In 1662 the temple and its sacred 
contents were piled promiscuously upon the earth. lemitsu was the 
reio:ning shogun at that time, and his treasury being low, he seized upon 



Brldgt^ at Arashiyama 



JAPAN. 175 

the opportunity to fuse the bronze into coins, some of which are in 
circulation to-day. 

Located in a building near by is an object of greater interest to the 
general visitor, the ponderous bell made of bronze and weighing over 
sixty-three tons. Its walls are nine inches in thickness, and it has a 
height of almost fourteen feet. This is larger than the Ta-shung-szu in 
Pekin, which has been considered the largest suspended bell in the 
world. 

As mighty as this bell appears, it has a companion that outrivals it. 
A broad avenue lined with cherry-trees leads to the temple of Chion-in, 
standing upon a hill in eastern Kyoto. This edifice was erected in 1211 
A. D., by a sort of wandering priest, who had organised a new creed 
known as "the Road to the Pure Land." 

This temple is the principal monastery of the sect. The edifices of this 
religious order, now called Jodo, are ^always plain and unostentatious, 
though full of interest. This one at Chion-in, if nothing else gave it 
fame, is noted enough for its massive bell, in reality the largest in the 
world. It hangs in the big bell tower erected in 1618, is ten feet and 
eight inches in height, nine feet in diameter, nine and one-half inches in 
thickness, and weighs but a fraction under seventy-five tons. For almost 
three hundred years it has regularly pealed forth its melodious calls to 
prayer. 

Japan has many other big bells of which she may well be proud, all 
of them producing a musical, voluminous sound, which falls on the ear 
with a softness and depth of tone that is wonderfully delightful. Russia 
is justly famous for her bells, — the bells of holy Moscow, the bells of St. 
Petersburg, the bells of lonely Ural Pass, whose mellow cadence has 
fallen like a funeral knell upon so many sad-hearted bands of exiles 
marching to a fate worse than death, the merry bells of festive Novgorod, 
— but the White Empire is outrivalled by the Slmrise Land, for nowhere 
do the bells of evening send forth such sweetness and volume of melody 
as in Japan. Here, in Kyoto, if you please, ring out those clear, solemn, 
massive tones, vibrating on the mellow air and through the ancient forests, 
swelling into grand octaves to which the atmosphere seems to lend wings, 
as they float far and wide, rising and falling with tremulous power; now 
fleeing into space, until apparently gone for ever, anon returning with 



176 



THE FAR EAST. 



reinforced melody ; again retreating, returning softer, sweeter, fainter, 
until languishing in space their beautiful cadence lingers long with the 
listener after the massive bell itself has become silent and motionless. 

The freedom from harshness distinguishing the bells of Japan is ob- 
tained by the different method taken in ringing them. Instead of having 
the metal tongue strike sharply against the bowl, a heavy wooden shaft is 
arranged to fall against the bell, which does not break in upon the deep- 




GION TEMPLE, KYOTO. 



volumed sound, which reverberates in an increasing circle, until the 
melody dies away in the distance with a gentle murmur. 

In the grounds of the great bell of Kyoto is an unpleasant reminder of 
war in the shape of an ancient mound, raised to commemorate the burial- 
plot of the trophies of a struggle with Corea in the sixteenth century, 
these mementoes being nothing less than the ears and noses of the slain, 
brought home by the triumphant army because it couldn't very well 
bring the bodies. 



1 



JAPAN. 177 

One of the spots of ancient interest is the shrine of Inari, which word 
signifies "the rice man." This plain^ austere structure was founded in 
711 A. D., over eighty years before Kyoto was built up as a city, and it 
is supposed to stand upon the spot where the goddess of rice first appeared 
in this vicinity. She was met by an old man carrying a sheaf of this 
grain on his back, and this symbol was accepted as the deity of the shrine. 
Like all sacred resorts of this ancient faith, the entrance is made under 
a great red torii standing on the main road, and then through a massive 
gate flanked by stone foxes. Reaching the haiden, or court, one comes 
to the principal chapel, with plain portals, and walls painted red and 
white. As well as being a shrine to this goddess, this place is the memo- 
rial of many followers of this religion, their monuments being parallel 
colonnades of red wooden torii, aggregating nearly five hundred in num- 
ber but varying in size. 

Moscow, the ancient capital of Russia, with its semi-Oriental and pic- 
turesque native grandeur, is to the Russians what Jerusalem is to the 
Jews, what Mecca is to the Mohammedans ; and Kyoto is all to Japan that 
the first is to the White Empire. Here Shintoism found its strongest 
adherents, and here it knew its greates , power. In later years it has 
become the headquarters of Buddhism, and the sects which have sprung 
from this religion. 

The former is called by the Japanese Kami no michi, which means 
" the way of the gods." The word Shinto comes from the Chinese, and is 
the form adopted by all foreigners. Shintoism trei^^s of the universe as 
simply Japan. It knows no. other lana, and its legends belong solely 
to the people of that narrow range of country. The religion is a mystery 
in itself. Its most devout followers do :iot appear to understand it. It 
appeals to the people from its very simplicity. It has no written doctrine, 
proclaims no moral code, pretends but vaguely to immortality, and knows 
no heaven nor hell. Its gods are nature's attributes personified, or 
national heroes deified. The first are the glorious sun, the mysterious 
sea, the swift-flowing river, the gray rock, the deep forest, the mighty 
mountain, and other forms and sounds, with their accompanying hosts of 
lesser powers. The majority of its deities however are historical person- 
ages, with the main principle ever in sight, that the emperor is the de- 
scendant of the gods who created the world, as Shintoism knows it. Thus, 



178 



THE FAR EAST. 



the one great object of the religion is to obey the royal representative in 
all things. This religion is the natural product of the country, but it is 
not uncommon to find a person born under that faith who dies under that 
of Buddha. 

As has been said, the Shinto shrines are severely plain, and alike at all 
places, illuminated by stone lanterns, and reached under massive stone or 
wooden torii. They are classified under four official grades : state, prov- 




KlYOMIZU AT KYOTO. 



ince, prefecture, and district. The first are mostly dedicated to " divine 
ancestors," the exception being where deified rulers or subjects have won 
especial distinction that gave them this honour. This list embraces two 
sovereigns, Ojin and Kwammu. Between these shrines and those of the 
district, the difference is not so much in the deities worshipped, but in 
the manner under which they are sought. The latter of necessity must 
be simpler, poorer, and less respectful. This comparison is illustrated by 
the shrine of Ise dedicated to Daijin-gu^ the goddess of the sun, which is 



Fujiyama, the Sacred Mountain of japan 



JAPAN. 179 

the highest in rank of all, and the Myo-jin, an inferior form of the same 
image, to be found in almost every hamlet. 

Few of these shrines receive more than a paltry support, say a couple 
of hundred yen a year, while otliers are more highly favoured. There are 
in the vicinity of one hundred and ninety-five thousand Shinto shrines in 
Japan, over which fifteen thousand shinktvans, Shinto officials, or priests 
as we should call them, perform the rites. The explanation, as to how so 
many shrines can be officiated at by so few priests, is explained by the 
fact that at many of them only one service is held during a year. The 
rest of the time the structure may stand open, but empt}^ of visitors, save 
that at irregular intervals a straggler may enter in solemn silence, sound 
the gong by pulling upon a hempen cord dangling conveniently near, and 
thus summoning the desired deity, to whom he mutters his supplication, 
pay his small fee, and leave with a hopeful heart. The salary of the 
priest is a mere pittance — perhaps thirty yen ; or he may, however, 
receive as high as one hundred yen, which would mean a hundred 
dollars a month, providing a yen were worth par value. Unfortunately 
for him it is not. The lives of these religious men are simple in the 
extreme, but they are allowed to marry. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

THE FLOWER OF RELIGION. 

OUR Japanese associate and companion must have been under tlie 
influence of the spell of Shintoism, when he guided us with becom- 
ing gravity to that sacred spot, Yomega-shima, " the island of the 
Young Wife." Tradition claims that except at bright noonday, or under 
a bright moon, this holy retreat consecrated to Benten, the goddess of 
beauty and eloquence, lies swathed in vapours. It was neither noon nor 
night when we reached the hallowed place, but we never gazed on clearer 
waters or a more entrancing landscape. We cheerfully forgive the gods 
for any omission they may have been guilty of on that particular occasion. 
What tradition lost we gained. Our companion, whose fund of legends 
touched with history, and tradition tinged with romance, never seems 
exhausted, quickly breaks in upon our re very of other days. We cannot 
well imagine where fact blends into fancy, but it is all very pretty. 

Sometime, no matter when, so long as it is over, a beautiful young 
woman disappeared from her home. Everybody believed that she had 
been treated ill, though very pious and good. The river was searched in 
vain by those who sought for her body, and the people despaired of ever 
solving the mystery of her fate. Then, at the still hour of midnight, 
this island was lifted noiselessly from the bed of the stream. AYhen it 
was discovered in the morning by the amazed people, the drenched form 
of the beautiful but unhappy woman was seen lying prone on its bosom. 
This was accepted as an omen from high heaven that she was well in her 
new sphere. Her body was buried on the island, and the islet conse- 
crated to Benten. A torii was then set up, surrounded by huge stones of 
marvellous shapes. The torii, with its stone lions, and the shrine stand 
yet, while overhead towering pines, grown gnarled, knotty, tortuous, with 
the years, fling their long, twisted arms over the place. We see all this, 
and we take our last look at the rugged trees, which remind us of so 
many Druids standing guard at this hallowed ground, in silent acceptance 
of the story. 

180 




PLUM BLOSSOMS. 



JAPAN. 



181 



On our way home we are reminded of another religion, that has tried 
for twelve hundred years to master this simple faith of Shinto, by a visit 
to the temple of San-ju-san-gen-do, first built in 1132, and rebuilt in 1266 
by the Emperor Kameyama. This is noted as being the depository of 
the 33,333 images of Kwannon, the thousand-handed goddess of mercy 
so often seen in Japan. Outside, the building has little to attract the eye, 





NHS^^Bb^H^^^^B 





TE3IPI.E OF SHIBA, 



but, once inside, the sight is dazzled by the vast collection of gilded deities. 
The central figure in the big hall of nearly four hundred feet in length 
is the large image of Kwannon, resting upon an enormous lotus-leaf. 
The goddess is attended by twenty-eight followers. The altar is decked 
with numerous symbols of Buddhism, while rows of the images of this 
particular goddess, cut five feet in height from solid wood, and gilded, are 
placed one above another on either side of the throne. In the mock halo 
encircling the forehead, and in the hand of each figure, are smaller images. 



182 



THE FAR EAST. 



There are a thousand large figures, and the rest made up of smaller 
ones, all representing the same original, but with no pair exactly alike. 
Glittering in their gilded vestments, they make a bewildering array. The 
gallery behind this strange display was formerly taken as a shooting- 
ground, and there are many arrows yet left sticking in the woodwork, 
that were sent hither by archers long since gathered to the dust of their 
fathers. 

Like the creed of Shinto, Buddhism was at first given to the inhabi- 




STEPS TO THE SACRED GATE. 



tants in a simple manner. In its simplicity lay its invading power. Its 
teachers nmst have foreseen this. A people that had lived longer than 
history, and in the dreamy atmosphere of an Oriental clime, under Shin- 
toism, were not prepared to receive a radical change. This new creed 
from the West, by the way of Corea, simply sought to teach that it was 
evil to take life, to steal, to be an enemy to woman, or to partake of 
stimulants. The cardinal virtues, which might have been expected to 
complete such a discipline, were to be gentle to all dumb creatures, pure 
in mind, truthful, moral, patient, charitable, peaceful. It is easy to see 
that these precepts carried out would make a person a model moral being. 



JAPAN. 183 

It is not difficult to understand that a race raised upon the code of Shin- 
toism could not be expected to take at a single draught even this simple 
remedy for their salvation. 

It will be seen that no revelation was attempted. AVhile the old creed 
was silent in regard to the future, this new docorine dared not venture 
at first into the mysteries of the unknown. The patrician, who had been 
given to believe, under the ancient plan, that he might eventually reach 
the dignity of becoming a deity, failed to accept to any particular degree 
the first tenets of Buddhism, which did not hold out to him this possible 
reward. Even the plebeian desired some more certain promise of promo- 
tion after death than he could see in this. So the high priests of Buddha 
went to work and gave to the j^eligion its first touch of Japanese spirit. 
One Dengyo Daishi, in 805 A. r/., under imperial sanction, if not encour- 
agement of the Tendai, that \l, "the heavenly command," taught the 
beatitude which declared the " Lotus Law," or that the covenant of the 
Buddha was the manifestation of the ancient deities Japan had been 
worshipping under the old creed. With this innovation, which restored 
to the patrician all of his old dreams, with pleasant surroundings, and 
gave to the plebeian what he had looked in vain for before, Buddhism 
became a naturalised subject, and immediately won favours and followers. 

Yet the new religion met with opposition from many sources on account 
of the deep mysteries about it, which even its teachers dared not or could 
not interpret, and because it required an absolute separation from worldly 
duties on the part of its disciples. It was commanded that the faithful 
follower should neither tarry by the way to admire the beautiful, covet 
the treasures about him, give any thought to business, or application to 
work. The average Japanese might readily accept the primary precepts 
of morality, abstemiousness, and care for his family that it taught, but 
he could not deny himself the busy world. Singularly enough, the 
cloister from whence emanated this doctrine was yet alive with the noise 
and tumult of strife not fairly over, for the monastery of Hiyei-zan, where 
these overzealous priests had their headquarters, had often echoed with 
resonant ring of arms and the tread of marching soldiery. 

So another, one of the greatest of Japanese religious teachers, Kobo 
Daishi, came forward, in 816 a. d., with the doctrine of the " True Word,'* 
which eliminated the objectionable features. The creed now consisted of 



184 



THE FAR EAST. 



a ceiitj;^! saving spirit, a band of pleading angels in heaven, and an end- 
less day 6f( happiness for those who followed the divine law, and an 
enduring punishment for those who had broken the religious precepts. 
It also held to tho incarnations of the Supreme Being, whose mission was 
to enlighten men, and lead them toward the better life. 

The Japanese were so wall satisfied with this plan of Buddhism, that 
it received no modifications for 360 years. Then a change in the condi- 




TYPICAL VIKW IX A MOXASTEKY GARDEN. 



tion of worldly affairs called for different religious teachings. Strife and 
contention had run such a wild riot over the land, that the country was 
deluged in blood, and sorrow bound the hearts of the people in such dis- 
tressing bonds that a brighter prospect for future salvation was desired. 
In the midst of this hopeless plight, Honen Shonin, in 1174, relieved the 
spiritual despair in a large measure by the foundation of the sect of Pure 
Land, Jodo, the underlying principle of which was faith. We have seen 
the temple of this sect at Kyoto. The beguiling tenet, that trust in 
Amida, the Buddha of endless life and happiness, gained for the disciple 



JAPAN. 



185 



admission to the garden of peace and perpetual joy, found many fol- 
lowers. 

Half a century later, this system was enlarged to accept love as an 
abiding element, and the new sect, which really became a supplement to 
that of the Pure Land, strengthened and beautified the whole. It was 
now taught that not only did Amida stand waiting at the golden gate to 
admit his disciples into paradise, but that he actually took up his abode in 




SHIRANUI TEMPLE. 



the heart of his worshipper during his mortal life. Many of the priests 
now married, ate meat, and learned in the home what they could never 
acquire under the old regime. Much of the superstition which had pre- 
viously entered into the forms of worship was abolished. This became 
tlie " Spirit Sect," and is to-day, beyond question, taken in conjunction 
with its parent, the Pure Land denomination, the most numerous religious 
order in Japan. One-third of all the temples in the empire belong to it. 
Still it was left for another, Nichiren, "the Lotus of Light," to 



Igg THE FAR EAST. 

approach nearer yet to Christianity by founding the sect known as the 
Ho-Hokke-shu, or " Flower of the Law." The essential difference between 
the idea advanced by this deep thinker, and the doctrine already adopted 
by the people, was that he held to the principle of a god who was supreme, 
the beginning and the end. All others had taught the result without 
trying to explain the origin. Nichiren's god was an omnipotent, omni- 
present, omniscient deity, to whom was due all the attributes, mental and 
physical. It held that common men failed to grasp the great principle 
that man was not of various natures, but with one ; that the earthly house 
in which he lived was not materially different from the heavenly abode, 
except as he saw things through eyes worldly and not divine. The 
mission of the sect of Nichiren, then, was to announce the close relation- 
ship of this life with that immortal. Under these teachings '- death 
ceased to be a passage to a mere non-existence, and became the entrance 
to actual beatitude. The ascetic selfishness of the contemplative disciple 
was exchanged for a career of active charity. The endless chain of cause 
and effect was shortened to a single link. The conception of one supreme 
all-merciful being forced itself into prominence. The gulf of social and 
political distinctions that yawned so widely between the patrician and the 
plebeian, separating them by a chasm which seemed well-nigh impassable, 
and all the un sightliness of the world, became eidola, destined to disappear 
at the first touch of the moral light. The Buddha and the people were 
identified." 

At this point it may be aptly inquired as to whether the influence upon 
the two classes of people in Japan was potential, and on which it fell 
with the greater power and good. Appealing at once to a large number, 
among which were the most far-seeing of the people, it fostered a litera- 
ture of high rank, and a philosophy of broad scope. It led to a search 
into the mysteries and profoundness of the Chinese life and learning, 
hitherto unknown to them. It reared temples grander, nobler, and richer 
than anything they had dared to imagine, while the ritualistic work was 
imposing and impressive beyond description. Not only did it afford a 
development of the morals, intellects, and ceremonials that had already 
subjugated Asia, but it showed to its latest disciples causes and results 
of which hitherto they had been in the densest ignorance ; it taught them 
the sanctions of worship, the penalties of wrong-doing, and an order of 



JAPAN. 



187 



reasoning which was capable of enlarging and improving the inner nature 
of man. The patricians received through it newer and broader ideals of 
laws and government, higher estimates of personal worth, and nobler 
conceptions of the household. The plebeians acquired through it im- 
proved methods of husbandry, loftier motives for toil, stronger ties of 
brotherhood, and a deeper valuation of home and its environments. In 
short, the religious immigrant from Asia brought a new era of civilisation, 




GROVE SURROUNDING A SHINTO - BUDDHIST SHRINE, 

and where before had been chaos, a blank space in the passage of time,. so 
far as written history is concerned, gave them a record, and existence 
among the nations. 

It need not be supposed that all of the ceremonials and sanctity of 
worship at the Buddhist shrine are made with the actual solemnity that 
appears on the surface. Many come here with their offerings, for the 
opportunity to enjoy a rest from daily toil. It is true there are certain 
features about the forms he adopts that seem to an Occidental severe ; 
but to him who looks deeper into the matter little of this is apparent. 



188 THE FAR EAST. 

Then, too, there are features connected with these exhibitions, — for they 
seem such to a stranger, — that appear oddly out of place in the presence 
of a worshipful throng. But the sight of some trivial, it may be vulgar, 
act, as we should rank it, in the sacred resort, does not shock the devout 
follower of Buddha. The female rope-dancer plies here what seems a 
proper calling, as her performances tend to enliven the solemn scene, and 
what lightens the cares of life must be right and pure in sight of Buddha. 
It should also be said that here the female gymnast performs her part in a 
manner quite unknown in the Occidental world. She dresses to conceal 
rather than to reveal any hint of her sex, and her acts are in keeping 
vfith. this purpose. It is her skill in doing some difficult feat that 
attracts the audience, and not any bold or untoward conduct. Again, a 
trained bird may be the object of interest, and surely there is no harm in 
this manner of entertainment. Meanwhile, inside the temple, the click- 
ing of the coin dropped into the treasury, the sputtering of the burning 
incense, and the monotonous tone of the priests at prayers, mingle with 
softening influence on the ripple of laughter rising from the light-hearted 
crowd surging to and fro, the chatter of monkeys, the cries of showmen, 
the song of birds, and the witty sayings of pretty girls. The whole creates 
a peculiar and not unhappy medley where the followers of religious faith 
do so with open hearts, and attempt no vain show of pretence of under- 
standing what of necessity they cannot know, laying their very souls, and 
not the mockery of a form, at the feet of a deity before which they bow 
in honest if in blind adoration. 

So far. Buddhism has met with no distressing opposition ; but now we 
come to its first great reverse. Until the capital was established at Kyoto, 
Shinto had absolute sway at the court of the ruling power. At this time 
Buddhism established a foothold, which made it a growing, if not a dan- 
gerous, rival. Still it was not recognised by the state, and its patrons 
were given no special privileges, until the triumph of lyeyasu led the sho- 
guns to look with increasing favour on the new faith. Under lemitsu, 
the third of the Tokugawa dynasty, the state stepped in to exercise con- 
trol over religious affairs, and the priests of Buddha were compelled to 
yield, and the teacher and scholar became neither. Once noted for his zeal 
the priest seemed to have lost all ambition and character. He did little, 
if anything, toward advancing the cause he represented, not even consid- 



JAPAN. 



189 



ering it a part of his duty to administer solace to the ill and suffering; 
nor did he offer any hopeful message to the dying. Once a year, at the 
great Bon festival, when the spirits of the dead were supposed to return 
for a short time to their former homes on earth, he was aroused from his 
lethargy enough to minister to his subjects, spurred on then by the 
thought of the recompense coming to him at this time, when a large 
percentage of his revenue was paid him. In view of this state of mind 
on the part of the 
leader, it can be no 
wonder if the spirit 
of religion waned. 

In the midst of 
this slow decline, 
when the doom of 
Buddhism seemed 
foreordained, the 
missionary from 
the Western w^orld 
came to crush out 
this lotus plant. 
But antagonism 
proved the means 
of awakening Bud- 
dhism from its be- 
numbing sleep. 
New life was 
quickl}^ infused 
into the old faith, 
and schools were established to educate its priests, who had too long 
been suffered to rest in ignorance. Thus the old religion was revivified 
and given new life by a rival. So the supporters of this ancient faith, 
imported hither from India by the way of Corea about six hundred years 
after the birth of Christ, are making earnest efforts to give greater power 
to their religion. New and imposing temples are being built, where art 
and nature combine at their best to make them attractive. People from 
over the country are contributing to their support, and an example of 




DANCIMG-GI UL, TOKYO. 



190 



THE FAR EAST. 



their liberality is the offering of women's hair from those who are too poor 
to contribute money. To understand the sacrifice made by these donors, 
one must know the high value placed on a head of good hair in Japan, 
where these ornaments are none too plentiful, and where the fair sex wear 
no covering for their heads which might conceal their loss until the shorn 
tresses have grown again. It means six months of retirement ; six months 
of seclusion. Here in Kyoto is a temple built in 1895 by the disciples 
of the sect of Monto, which cost in its construction over 8,000,000 yen. 




THE SACRED ROAD. 



The cables, used to draw the huge timbers, were made of women's hair, 
and there is a gift here by the women of one province, of a huge rope of 
hair nearly three hundred feet in length. 

During the first half of the eighteenth century, when the tidal wave 
of ancient tradition swept over the country, an attempt was made to 
drown out the tenets of Buddhism and Confucianism. This had much 
to do with the political revolution of 1867. The Buddhist temples were 
shorn of their rich appendages, and religion suffered the loss of vast 
estates belonging to it. But it was too deeply engrafted into the beliefs 
and inspirations of the people to be uprooted by official and political 



JAPAN. 



101 



interposition. It soon began to reassert its fallen prestige, and by the 
Constitution of 1869 it was firmly declared that Japanese subjects should 
be free to enjoy religious belief according to their wishes. 

Buddhism has never been more thoroughly alive in Dai Nippon than it 
is at the present 
time. It has 108,- 
000 temples in 
Japan, and fifty-five 
thousand priests. 
These last, unlike 
the Shinto, have no 
official rank, neither 
are their temples 
classified. They 
obtain their means 
of sustenance 
from contribu- 
tions paid by their 
parishioners, and 
from the income 
derived from lands 
belonging to relig- 
ious organisations. 
This last source of 
revenue was greatly 
reduced when gov- 
ernment took away 
a large portion of 
this landed prop- 
erty. 

No native-born Christian has risen to the position of prelate, though 
there are several bishops and archdeacons belonging to the Protestant 
and Catholic faiths who were born in America or Europe, while there is 
an archbishop of European birth. The Japanese churches are represented 
by pastors of their own nationality, and these are in duty bound to attend 
the ceremonies given by the imperial direction at the Hall of Reverence. 




SHINTO PRIEST. 



192 THE FAR EAST. 

The Christian portion of the population, as might be expected, fail to 
participate in the religious rites which the followers of the ancient relig- 
ions hold to be important. 

Of late the Shinto has made rapid strides toward the belief in one god, 
and Amaterasu is worshipped as that supreme divinity, while the imperial 
family are looked upon as her descendants, and treated as under-deities. 
This religion remains the creed of the roj^al house, based upon the follow- 
ing statement, which gives in unmistakable terms the standing of that 
line : " The imperial founder of our house, and our other imperial ances- 
tors, by the help and support of the forefathers of our subjects, laid the 
foundation of our empire upon a basis which is to last for ever. That this 
brilliant achievement embellishes the annals of our country is due to the 
glorious virtues of our sacred imperial ancestors and to the loyalty and 
bravery of our subjects, their love of country, and public spirit." To many, 
it will not be a startling discovery to find that Buddhist priests assist in 
this Shinto worship, since it has been shown that the representatives 
of the former religion have declared Buddha to be a reincarnation of 
Amaterasu. 



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VILLAGE FESTIVAL. 



CHAPTER XX. 

RELIGIOUS FESTIVALS. 

JAPAN denies herself the rest and religious exercises of Sunday as 
taught by the Protestant Church, but she has many sacred observ- 
ances and traditional festivals regarded by her people as acts of wor- 
ship. Until recently, Church and state joined hand in hand in these 
ceremonies. But modern Japan has broken the rule of ancient Japan. 
In other respects the situation has not changed, except to modify in a 
slight degree the manner of observance. In all ages the people have 
held to the bright side of the picture, attempting to please the gods by 
the sunshine of light hearts rather than by the clouds of a devotion made 
in sackcloth and ashes. 

This form of worship, however, has always contained a certain amount 
of evil, on account of the lack of restraint allowed by the devotees. " Thus, 
more than a thousand years ago, official interposition had to be made in 
the semi-annual festivals of the North Star to hold in check the prodigal 
display of the lower sentiments of the religious followers, lest the very 
gods be offended at the low scale of morality under which their believers 

193 



194 THE FAR EAST. 

worshipped. The effect of this intervention was not lasting, for a little 
over a hundred years later official intervention had to be made in the 
very capital of the nation to moderate, if not control, the wild passions 
of the overzealous performers, wdiose ungovernable claims of the body 
outweighed their spiritual inspiration. To-day we discover evidence of 
this human weakness where we had hoped to find a stronger sentiment 
prevailing, and even at the sacred groves of Ise, within sight of the gods 
and goddesses of religious renown, stands the Temple of Temptation, with 
doors wide open to tliose who would enter. 

Keligious festivals are the most striking features of native life, and 
mirror tlie very soul of Japan. The most important fete of this kind is 
the Gion- mat Sinn, held annually in Kyoto, w^hich it is our good fortune 
to see. The most imj)ortant distinction of this, like many another, is the 
magnificence of its pageantry. The foremost dasJii, or car, carries upon 
the top of a mighty upright, rising a hundred feet into the air, a glaive 
forged from the charmed anvil of the wonderful sword-maker, Sanjo 
Munechika, and credited with possessing the virtue of curing the ague at 
a single touch of its blade. Behind this dashi follow twenty-three cars, 
bearing the effigies of as many noted scholars and philosophers, a mock 
moon, a mantis, and a stealer of flowers. One of the most prominent per- 
sonages of this elaborate procession is a dancing-girl, who postures in the 
centre of the dais on the foremost dashi. Uj)on her the city has lavished 
its richest and finest display of clothing, nothing considered too good or 
beautiful. She is accompanied by a maid of honour on either side, though 
they reap small share of the glory showered upon the car. Upon reach- 
ing the portals of the temple of Gion, the " little goddess " is given a glass 
of holy wine, and an amulet supposed to have been blessed by the god, 
whereupon she at once becomes a " sacred child." 

Each special district, at the time of its matsuri, or festival, given in 
honour of some particular deity whose shrine has been reared in that 
place, feels at liberty to worship as many other deities as it likes. Thus 
these fetes are often marked with a singular mixture or combination of 
divinities, summoned at the will of the people from the mystic fountains 
of the material and spiritual world. 

Each of these deities is allowed a separate palanquin, a shrine on 
wheels, the principal god being given the place of honour at the head of 



Jinrikishas 



wheels, i 



JAPAN. 



195 



the sacred van. The carriage is lacquered a deep black, relieved by 
golden ornaments. On the roof a golden phenix perches with wings 
outspread, while a roof -tree glistens in decorations of copper. Inside this 
shrine is placed the ef^gy of the god who calls forth this train, a torii in 
front and one behind, made conspicuous by their red lacquer. The other 
deities are not placed inside the car, but mounted in gorgeous panoply 
high over the heads of the crowd riding upon it. The first car is not 
decorated, but this one, called the dashi, " a car of gentle motion," can be 




KOTA AND SAMSIN PLAYERS. 



described as a wooden house on four wheels, but having a mass of carving, 
decoration, and elaboration that defies description. An attempt of this 
kind would be useless, as far as concerned its representation of a class, for 
no two of these strange cars are ever made alike. The carvings on this 
one represent, in part, flights of phenixes rising on wide-spreading wings, 
trains of tortoises, and columns of marching dragons. Among the deities 
included are to be seen the zodiacal conceptions, the goddess of matrimony, 
the goddess of the sea, the seven gods of fortune, the conquering empress ; 
in fact, the deities supposed to govern every trade and craft which most 
aiffiects tliat particular locality. On a platform raised from twelve to 



196 THE FAR EAST. 

twenty feet above the ground, encircled and entangled amid the drapery 
of silk and brilliant brocades, snow-white gohei, and wreaths of gold and 
silver flowers, stand half a hundred people, while over their heads rises, 
on a high pillar, the carved head of the sacred object to v/hich the car 
has been dedicated. 

The host of images, and the dashi on which they are transported, are 
kept in the dwellings of chosen citizens and it is, perhaps, needless to say 
that they are watched over with zealous care. Not one of these objects 
is without its special interest as well as personality, and every bit of his- 
tory connected with it is known to its guardian, who relates it with great 
pride and piety. As may be imagined, these festivals scintillate with 
romance and tradition. Not one is barren of some wonder tale, some 
strange and interesting incident connected with its career, and the 
occasion of the fete is regarded as a day of uncommon importance in 
the annals of the place. But along with the crumbling of the institu- 
tions of old Japan, the glory of these festivals is gradually wearing away, 
and in the light of modern thought and enterprise will soon live only in 
memory. 

Perhaps our Japanese companion is thinking of this, and vividly con- 
trasting the old way with the new, for he suddenly bursts forth into a 
strain of eloquence over a description of one of the famous Sano trains 
as it 'Wound througli the one hundred and sixty streets constituting that 
parish not so very long ago. Preparations were begun for the festival by 
the citizens two days before the grand event came off, when the dwell- 
ings were made as gay and attractive as possible by many-coloured mats 
thrown over corner, lattice, and lintel ; in fact, every spot where a show 
could be made. The tops of the buildings were made as good sites for 
watching the procession as possible. The rooms of the houses that fronted 
upon the street were fitted up with screens of gold-foil for a background, 
and from poles hung up, and from the eaves of the buildings, were hung 
paper lanterns of bright hues and fantastic paintings. Everywhere no 
pains were spared to enliven the coming event with the grandest display 
that could be made. . 

The dashi was drawn by six black oxen decorated in red and white, 
and moving with becoming slowness, stopping at frequent intervals. At 
these pauses the music of flutes and drums filled the air, while the merry 



JAPAN. 



197 



spectators applauded roundly. When moving, the chant of the dashi 
drivers kept time in a sort of rhythmical order in keeping with the 
decorous advance of the train. 

The procession was led by two small and two large banners, or hata, 
made of strips of white cotton cloth strung from bamboo poles, and bear- 
ing the names of the tutelary deities. The carriers of these were followed 
by a spearman, a dozen men carrying a big drum, two men with wooden 
blocks, which they smote together at regular intervals, two men with 




A PALANQUIN. 

flutes, twenty-four men bearing above their heads the image of the sacred 
Shishi-no Kashira, or Dog of Fo, a mounted Shinto priest, thirty-two men 
carrying three heavy spears, another priest on horseback, the sacred steeds 
of the gods, a sacred sword, three mounted Shinto priests, the guards of 
the shrine, a couple of musicians disguised with masks of the Tengu, or 
forest genii, fifty men bearing the sacred palanquin, two men with the 
rice-box of the principal deity, six men bearing the banquet table of the 
deity, half a dozen attendants on the shrine, body of prominent citizens 
in costumes befitting the occasion, thirty inferior Shinto priests in sacer- 
dotal costume, two men carrying the gohei (an emblem of Shintoism used 



198 THE FAR EAST. 

in the temples), a young girl attired in attractive costume and riding 
in a richly decorated palanquin, two men with hyoshigi, a second palan- 
quin borne by fifty men, followed by the same retinue as the first ; 
a third palanquin carried by fifty men, and succeeded by attendants 
with rice-box of the deity, table of the deity borne by six men, 
mounted Shinto priest, ten Buddhist priests in armour and riding 
war-steeds, the Lord High Abbot in canonicals, riding in a palanquin, 
the four-doored palanquin of the deity, ox-carriage of the god, spears- 
men, and glaivesmen, followed by vast crowds of people ready to pull 
or push on any of the carriages, to shout or sing, as the occasion might 
demand. 

Alternating with the Sano festival is that of the Kanda, which occupies 
the attention of the capital city for nearly a month. This is considered 
of greater consequence than the other, and greater preparations are made 
for it. With the gorgeous display, a generous amount of food and drink 
is furnished, the national beverage, sake, being freely offered. But the 
main feature is the dress. The young daughters of the city are decked 
out in most elaborate manner, without regard to cost, the one object in 
view being to outshine any previous attempt of that kind. A jDrominent 
feature of the Kanda matsura is a bevy of geisha, dancers, who follow 
the procession and exhibit from time to time examples of their art in 
ancient dances, which consists principally of waving the hands in a most 
graceful manner. It must seem strange to the foreign observer to see 
these dainty, pretty little maids dressed, not in the bright costumes that 
it w^ould be natural to expect on this festive occasion, but in the som- 
bre hued, and unbecoming garments of the common labourer, the tight- 
legged trousers and small-sleeved tunic. The dancing-girl has sacrificed 
her glossy raven hair, imitating in this part the fashion of her brother. 
But here she stops, and the plainness and darkness of her garb is con- 
cealed beneath fairy grounds of embroidered blossoms and foliage, in the 
brightest colours of nature. So while she sacrifices something for her 
religion, she gains much in display, and a surfeit of applause from her 
admirers. And somewhere in that vast crowd of seekers after pleasure 
and religion is one who has perhaps spent half of his year's earnings 
that she may win the honours of this fete. He is, moreover, willing to 
spend another six months' wages that she may remain in indolence until 



JAPAN. 



199 



those sacrificed tresses shall again become a respectful adornment for her 
shapely head. 

The more prominent deity worshipped in this festival is a descendant 
of the sun-goddess, but there is another who shares its glory whose name, 
according to the moral code of any other country, would seem to invite 
oblivion and obloquy rather than this respectable prominence. He was 
an arch-traitor to a ruling sovereign of Japan in the sixth century, the 
only man in the history of the country to undertake a rebellion against 




TOILET. 



his ruler. He paid for his rebellious ambition with his life on the plains 
of Smimosa, dying in the midst of battle, and his head was taken in wild 
exultation to Kanda for interment. Later, the stigma belonging to his 
memory was supplanted by loud praises, and his effigy was borne with 
divine honours at the festival of Kanda. Why was this done ? Do the 
Japanese love treachery, that they would deify such a man, and hold him 
up as an object of divine adoration ? No. It is not because of this ; but 
it is done as an expression for their love of heroism. If Massakado, the 
rebel, died as a traitor, he fell fighting like a hero. It is the bravery of 
that undauuted spirit, which dared defy his ver}^ sovereign, that afforded 



200 



THE FAR EAST. 



an example of heroism which they worship ; not Massakado, whose name 
is abhorred and detested. 

There is another example of this kind at Sano, where a deity is held 
up for admiration and honour, whose very name is covered with shame 
and ignominy. This is Kumassaka Chohan, burglar of ancient times, but 
a man of such audacious recklessness that his effigy is held in religious 
veneration, and his bravery extolled in song and story and religious rites. 
It will thus be seen that the Japanese possess such a high sense of 




A SACRED RETREAT, 



courage — an attribute we are not prepared really to understand — -that 
they can overlook the low-born nature of the hero while they worship 
that divine spark of heroism inherent in him. 

A case of this kind has had a more recent origin. In 1889 the Viscount 
Mori, minister of education, and one of Japan's most enlightened states- 
men, was stabbed by a young man on the steps of his home, in sight of a 
crowd of people, just as he was starting on his way to the palace on that 
occasion which was to Avitness the acceptance of the nation's first Consti- 
tution. Scarcely had the assassin struck his terrible blow before he fell, 
pierced by the swords of half a dozen of the minister's attendants. The 



JAPAN. 



201 



body of the murderer was buried without ceremony, and it seemed that his 
memory would be speedily relegated to the caverns of obloquy. But soon 
after, in reply to the inquiry set afoot as to what had led the rash youth 
to commit such a flagrant crime, under such daring circumstances, and at 
a time of such approaching honours, it was said he had been prompted 
to the act under the fanatical belief that he was the chosen agent to 
avenge what he considered an insult committed at the great shrine of 




GREAT STONE LANTERN, YOKOHAMA. 



Ise by the prominent statesman. The irreverence of the minister may 
have been only the wild imagination of the overzealous murderer, but 
the circumstances under which he dared to strike his blow of vengeance, 
the time, the vast number of witnesses, and the certainty that he must 
pay for it with his life, fired the Japanese with a religious veneration for 
the heroic deed of the avenger. His burial-place was disclosed, and his 
grave no longer remained a secret corner ; the crowds flocked to it as a 
sacred spot, the smoke of incense floated over it, and the hallowed place 
became a garden of flowers. Hither flocked the liigh and low, the artisan 



202 THE FAR EAST. 

and the actor, the farmer and the merchant, the geisha and the wrestler, 
the fencmg-master and the warrior, the priest and the politician, one and 
all. By this it must not be understood that the masses were ignorant of 
the real signification that might be given to this. A word from the em- 
peror would have instantly stopped it' all, and the mob would have as 
quickly turned upon him who dared to render further homage to the dead. 
It was not hero-worship, as we bestow it ; it w^as the valour of the doer, 
the picturesque daring which had caused an educated youth, with bright 
prospects in life, to ignore them all, and, under the unselfish motives of 
religious duty, to seek his victim in broad daylight, at his very home, sur- 
rounded by his armed retainers, and in the presence of soldiery and police 
and citizens to deal the most influential man in the empire, next to the 
emperor, his death-blow, which placed him among the deities. Had he 
struck that blow in the dark, as a coward strikes, or sought to cover 
himself from death by flight, it would have been different, and the name 
of Nishino Buntaro would have lived only in the calendar of crime. 

Speaking of the shrine of Ise, we are reminded here of the perpetual 
fire of Hestia kept burning two thousand years in the Grecian prytaneum, 
and find that the stone lanterns of this place have been sending forth 
their continuous flames of light since the early days of the gods, a period 
of nearly three thousand years. Another shrine that outrivals the record 
of Greece in this respect is that in Izumo. 




A TEA- HOUSE CJIUL. 



CHAPTER XXI. 

THE PINE OF THE LOVERS. 

AWAY from the centres of population the rehgious festivals often 
partake of singular features, and common objects are frequently 
made the subject of desire or adoration. In the provinge of Omi 
is a form of worship intended to encourage fidelity in married women. 
This takes place in the month of April, on " the first day of the horse." 
In Japan the faithful wife is a person of high esteem, and it is the aim 
of the truly conscientious woman not only to be true to the marital 
bonds, but to keep the memory of her husband after his death by remain- 
ing in the single state. By being faithful in the marital bonds it is not 
to be understood to be merely faithful in outward appearances, but for 
her to adapt herself to the whims, caprices, and temper of her husband, 
though he is not expected to do as much on his part. When it is taken 
into consideration that the wife assumes these vows without any previous 
acquaintance with her future master, something of the responsibility she 
takes upon herself may be imagined. It might be thought that many of 
them would shirk this exacting and trying part, but it belongs to woman's 
glory to be married once, and to show to the world her faithfulness in 
conjugal life. On these festivals mentioned, the wives and widoAvs are 
expected to parade themselves before the public, carrying upon their 
heads as many earthenware pots as they have had husbands, the fewer 
the greater the honour. One might conclude that they would hesitate in 
thus publicly proclaiming their record, for in Japan marriage and divorce 
are close companions, but they have another motive in view. This is the 
l)elief, that the goddess of matrimony will punish any insincerity, which 
prompts them to carry the full number of pots, let the tongues of the 
gossipers wag as they may. There is a legend that one woman, more 
crafty than wdse, managed to have her pots graduated in size, so that, 
while their number was not small, she presented the appearance of carrying 
but one. As is often the case with such triiiers, she was overtaken in 

203 



204 



THE FAR EAST. 



her deception, for she tripped and fell, when her true character was shown, 
to her lasting disgrace. 

In the province of Kishu there has been and is to-day, among the more 
superstitious, the belief that all the deities repair every year in the tenth 

month to hold a 
festival of rejoic- 
ing, which is called 
the " laughing fes- 
tival." This takes 
place at the great 
shrine of Izumo, 
and the period is 
known elsewhere, 
on account of the 
fact that all the 
gods gather here to 
the neglect of their 
usual duties, as 
" the month of the 
godless moon." 
Here and then, 
amid a scene of un- 
common mirth, are 
arranged the nup- 
tial plans for the 
coming year. The 
name and peculiar 
signification of this 
festival originated 
with the incident 
of a belated god. One of those who was to meet there, in the days of 
yore, started in season, but, mistaking the date, and thinking he had more 
than ample time to reach the sacred place, dallied by the way, so he did 
not arrive until the last debate was over and the exercises closed. It is 
supposed the other deities laughed long and heartily over the discomfiture 
of their comrade, and thus the fashion of the festival was set for all time. 




OIREAN GIKL. 



JAPAN. 205 

The manner of observing this divine parliament is quaint. As the time 
draws near, old and young collect, the latter forming in front of the pro- 
cession, the others falling into line in the order of their ages, each one, 
from the first to the last, carrying two boxes of oranges and persimmons 
held aloft on bamboo sticks. Upon reaching the shrine, the march hav- 
ing been made with proper solemnity, the children are commanded by the 
eldest man to laugh. No sooner has the first child started the glee than 
others catch up the merriment, the men following the example, until, the 
entire train keeping up the merrymaking, the whole district rings with 
the laughter of the occasion. In this way it is believed the gods like 
to have their people meet and make merry, as well as to bear cheer- 
fully the heavy cares of life. 

Other festivals follow various methods of proceeding, and among these 
athletic competition is held in high favour. Here in Kyoto we have seen 
the annual wrestling tournament, which decides the national champion- 
ship as to muscular strength and skill. In the Ugo Province stands a 
shrine of this nature, where regularly, on the fifth day of the first month, 
the athletes of the province, often to the number of thousands, used to 
gather to decide the mettle of their arms and bodies. As this spot was 
situated at the top of the mountain of Kimpo-zan, where at that season 
the snow lay to the depth of a dozen feet, and often deeper, it was no 
small part of the undertaking to reach the scene of the trial. It was 
expected that the rivals should all repair to a snow-cave a quarter of 
a mile distant the night before the trial. At the break of dawn, stripped 
to their loin-cloths, they were expected to rush from the rendezvous to 
see who could reach the shrine first. This victor, who won only after 
a stern race up the snowbound cliffs, was supposed to be favoured with 
the protection of the god throughout the year. Following this race, the 
whole party got as near to the shrine as possible, when the great wrestling' 
trial began. The object was really not to see who should remain the 
longest on his feet, but rather to oust one after another out of the en- 
closure. As fast as the space was partly cleared, newcomers, who had 
been behind in the race to the summit, joined in, it being the rule for the 
strongest to aid the weakest. The excitement and confusion of this wild 
sport, in which several thousands joined, may be well imagined, but accord- 
ing to legend no one was ever seriously injured in the melees. This is 



206 



THE FAR EAST. 



accounted for mainly by the utmost good-feeling which prevailed through- 
out the whole affair, until the last man, the champion of the year, was 
left alone on the sacred ground. Then he was caught up on the shoul- 
ders of his companions, and bearing him thus the entire crowd marched 
down the mountain in good order, singing and shouting as they moved 
along. 

A festival is given at Ono-machi in honour of the Susa-no-o, that high- 
tempered god who drove his sister into one of the caverns of the earth. 




A WRESTLING MATCH. 



This ceremony does not call for any regal processions, any elaborately 
carved and decorated dashi, or artistically dressed dancing-maidens, but 
is performed by a band of lusty men dragging the chariot along the road 
at a furious pace. Upon reaching the seashore, they plunge in breast- 
deep, holding above the briny tide their burden ; then they rush back^ 
to the shrine at the top of their speed. Should any one fall by the 
way, there is another to take his place, every one running and striving 
as if his life depended on his activity. Once the shrine is reached, 
all this wild tumult instantly ceases ; the horde that a moment before 
seemed so anxious to rend each other to pieces in the mad struggle 



JAPAN. 



207 



now chat and drink as if dull care and strife were unknown to 
them. 

Other objects at other shrines are as zealously catered to in the wild 
fashion of the people. At Hakozaki is the shrine of the " god of war," 
where it is believed the bountiful offerings made in the thirteenth century 
caused that god to raise a storm on the sea, which destroyed the power- 




BRONZE HORSE. 



ful armada of the Monguls, then on its way to conquer the country of 
Dai Nippon. 

At the temple of Kwannon a scrabble for pieces of wood thrown to 
the multitude by the priests is made in commemoration of the " goddess 
of mercy." This is at Saidai-ji, in the province of Bizen. These blocks 
are not credited with any supernatural attributes, but are emblematical 
of the benevolence of the giver. As it is considered of importance to get 
one of these amulets, the rush for them grew from year to year, until it 
became necessary to limit the number of the rivals. Again athletic exer- 
cises were resorted to in order to regulate the matter. So everything is 
arranged to open at a specified time. 

At ten o'clock at night, on the fourteenth day of the first month, the 



208 THE FAR EAST. 

8th of February corresponding to the calendar now, the competitors hav- 
ing taken their places, at the beat of a drum they dash madly through 
the grounds of the temple, and running at breakneck speed, reach the 
river flowing through the town. Here a swift bath is taken to purify 
themselves, and they enter the sacred enclosure by a way hitherto untrod 
by them. A second tap of the drum at midnight warns another body 
of contestants to follow in the track of the first. Two hours later the 
drum sends forth its deep-toned note, as a signal that the first part of 
the contest is over. During the four hours a steady stream of rushing 
men has been passing through the court, the constant tread of so many 
feet, rising and swelling in volume, making a roar similar to the breaking 
of waves on the seashore, so that the echo of these footsteps can be heard 
twenty miles away. 

The last drum-beat has not died away before the shingi, a round stick 
of pine wood, consecrated by the prayers of the priests, is flung from a 
temple window into the midst of the crowd. At the same time a hundred 
lesser tokens, called kushigo, are made to accompany the other, and the 
mad struggle of the mob begins. As the main prize is the shingi, every 
one bends all his energies toward capturing that as long as he has any 
reason for hoping to obtain it. The second scramble comes for the smaller 
prizes, and fortunate is he who gets one of these in a crowd of tens of 
thousands, of whom only a hundred can win. That the contest is a 
furious one goes without saying, and the noisy battle of the naked men 
striving there in the temple grounds is a sight to be long remembered 
by the witness. In all these religious festivals, and we have only men- 
tioned a small part, it will be seen that the more educated class has little 
to do, it being left for the more ignorant and superstitious to keep alive 
the spirit of their existence. 

Wherever one goes in Japan he is unpleasantly reminded of the practice 
of burning the body and limbs by doctors to cure the ills of the flesh, or 
by the person himself, if he belongs to the athletic class, to produce 
muscles where strength is desired, or else by officials as a way of punish- 
ing criminals. The result is many ugly, repulsive scars on men, women, 
and even children. In Kyoto are many specialists of this sort, who, for a 
trivial sum, practice this ancient method of treatment on their patients. 
In the offices of these physicians hang life-size charts of the human form, 



JAPAN. 



209 



with dots and dashes showing where certain diseases must be treated. 
Their outfit consists of two large iron pots containing slumbering fires, 
over which are placed sticks of red-hot charcoal. Over the spot to be 
treated on the patient, a small piece of combustible substance like punk 
or sponge is laid, and the fiery end of the stick of charcoal is held on it 
until the object begins to burn. The fire thus fed is allowed to eat into 
the flesh a sufficient depth, when the burning mass is removed. The 
odour of burning flesh is apparent, and sometimes these wounds are as 




JAPANESE DOCTOR. 



large as a silver dollar. Jinrikisha men, whose limbs require strength, 
often resort to this method of gaining the required muscle, until their 
limbs are covered with these hideous scars along the sinews and ligaments. 
We have been on a trip to the shore of the Inland Sea, and a royally 
good time we have had, too. Among the places of interest that we visited 
was that hallowed tree on the bank of the Takasago, known in romance 
as the " Pine of the Lovers." Whoever passes that way on a moonlit night 
can see the shadowy forms of the ancient lovers step forth from the heart 
of the pine, and hear in the whispering coast wind their renewed pledges 
of love and fidelity. If the fortunate comer looks closer, he will soon see 



210 



THE FAR EAST. 



the maid and her lover, with bamboo rakes in their hands, draw together 

the fallen needles of the ancient tree. 

If the time was not auspicious for us to behold this pretty sight and 

listen to the oft-repeated murmurs of love, this was partly made up for by 

the mellow 
voice of our 
dreamy com- 
panion as he 
told in language 
that bore unmis 
takable impres- 
sions of other 
days the legend 
of the tree, 
which was 
planted in the 
last days of the 
god of sacred 
trust. No man 
was living in 
this country 
then, but later 
a humble fisher- 
man and his 
wife took up 
their abode on 
the sandy shore 
not far from the 
^YPEs. Great Pine. In 

time there was 

born to them one child, a beautiful daughter, whose eyes were as clear as 

the silvery pools of the Inland Sea, and whose countenance shone as 

brightly as the sunshine on Lake Biwa. 

0-Matsu, for that was the name given her by her parents, having no 

playmates, loved to sit by the hour under the pine, knitting the fallen 

needles into strange and fanciful shapes. At one time she wove herself a 





- f w 



fPI^^^^^ 



JAPAN. 



211 



mantle of such beauty that her father and mother marvelled much. Again 
she braided a fantastic sash, which they called obi, and this she declared 
she would not wear until her wedding-day came. Thereupon the faces of 
her parents grew anxious, for they knew of no eligible young man to seek 
her for a bride. 

But it was not for poor mortals to peer into the future. Even as 
0-Matsu had been plying her shuttle, a youth across the bay was watching 




LAKE -SHORE AND FOLIAGE. 



the flight of the far-flying heron, and wondering what land lay beyond 
the broad sea plain. The more he thought about it the stronger became 
his determination to visit the unknown country ; so one day he started to 
swim the long distance. Well was it for him that he was a stalwart 
swimmer, else had he never been cast up by the waves at the very feet of 
0-Matsu, as she wove her fancy work and dreamed her dreams. 

If she was at first startled by this unexpected stranger, coming in this 
strange manner, she soon recovered herself. She saw that he was both 



212 THE FAR EAST. 

young and good looking, and she dragged him to where she had raked 
together a goodly layer of pine-needles. Lying on this soft couch, the 
newcomer speedily returned to consciousness. His joy upon awakening 
and seeing who was watching him need not be told ; neither need it be 
repeated how the twain immediately felt for each other that love which is 
as changeless as the pine. 

The lovers hailed it as a good omen that they exchanged their vows of 
constancy beneath the old sacred tree, and the parents of 0-Matsu were 
very much pleased, for they looked on Teoyo, as the lover gave his name, 
as a model youth. So the happy couple were wed, and Teoyo, having no 
desire to recross the sea, remained to help his new father, who was 
becoming aged now. 0-Matsu never had reason to regret her marriage, 
and the happy pair, when the day's toil was done, used to seek the old 
pine, bamboo rake in hand, and while they repeated their pledges of love, 
raked together the pine-needles. 

The passing years took away their aged parents, and changed many 
conditions of the country ; but three things remained unchangeable, — the 
Inland Sea, the noble pine, and their love. A crane came and built her 
nest in the old tree, and reared her young there, while a tortoise came and 
dwelt close by its foot. These two and the pine gave the lovers promise 
of long life and endurance. But the longest span must have an end, and 
there came a season when both tottered under the weight laid on them by 
many years. Still they did not fail to visit often the friendly pine, and, 
seated on its soft needle carpet, they would tell over, as they had done in 
their youth, the sweet story of love, sweeter far now under the constancy 
of years. And never did they forget to rake together a pile of needles 
with their bamboo rakes before they went away, that there might be a 
couch for them when they should return. At last a day came when the 
sunset played at hide and seek in the top of the lofty pine, and the bamboo 
rakes lay undisturbed for the first time during many years. This was not 
because their owners had at last been unfaithful to their trusts, but be- 
cause they rested on a couch made by hands eternal on the farther shore 
of the River of Souls. And this simple story explains why the two 
lovers are seen at bright moonlight beneath the old pine. 



CHAPTER XXII. 

THE MARKET OF MIRTH. 

LIVING the existence of a secluded people for over two thousand 
years, — what has been aptly called a Crusoe life, — Japan affords, 
in the study of any part of her history, rare interest to the scholar, 
philosopher, and antiquarian, while the general reader cannot fail to be 
instructed and amused. Closely allied to the religious festivals of the 
inhabitants have been their fetes of seasons and flowers, their pastimes"^ 
and the celebration of important events, which have marked the long 
highway of centuries like so many mile-stones. One by one these ob- 
servances have been added to the growing list, coming with steady and 
unannounced heraldry through all the generations, until such a strong 
bond of custom and conventionality has been fastened upon the people as 
they hardly realise. Thus the island empire is environed and interwoven 
with such a strict system of religious and fraternal associations as no 
other country on the globe can equal . At the same time, no other race is 
capable of showing a finer appreciation of these pleasant, graceful, appro- 
priate, and harmonious observances. 

The year in Dai Nippon, during the old regime, began under a movable 
calendar, and in the winter season it was from two to six weeks later than 
under the Gregorian reckoning. But even then it came in what was 
really a winter month, though it was looked upon as the awakening of 
spring, and was called ris-shun, "springtime," notwithstanding the fact 
that the plum and the yuki-ivari-so, " snow-parting plant," did not open a 
bud for weeks to come. 

New-year's is among the most scrupulously observed days in the year, 
and no work of any kind is supposed to be done. This does not mean 
that any one is left in idleness, for there are the preparations for calling 
on friends and acquaintances, and as on this occasion all don their best 
clothes, no little care and time is spent in this part of the celebration. 
The calls on those in the higher class by those in the lower are of the most 

213 



214 



THE FAR EAST. 



formal nature, but those between friends are generally visits of pleasure, 
where small presents are given and the gossip of the season is exchanged 
in a confidential manner. Every countenance is wreathed in smiles, and 
peals of laughter are heard on every hand. Each person is dressed in his 

or her best, which 
means that bright 
colours have been 
given an outing, for 
the Japanese love 
best the hues that 
set the example of 
cheerfulness in this 
market of mirth. 

In some respects 
New-year's Day is a 
serious affair to the 
head of the family, 
though its duties are 
performed to the 
minutest particular 
with a grace and 
lightness of spirit in 
keeping with the 
general brightness of 
the glad occasion. 
First donning his 
holiday attire, he 
makes his offerings 
to the deities, both 
spiritual and terrestrial, proffers his remembrance to the shades of his 
fathers, offers his salutations of good-will to his living kin and friends, 
and then partakes of a morning meal intended to be in keeping with the 
association of the day. 

No householder is in such humble circumstances that he does not have 
to prepare a "heavenly table," — a tray lacquered in bright colours and 
decorated with the foliage of the evergreen yuziiriha. This is considered 




LAXTKRX SP:LLF.R. 



JAPAN. 215 

the only fitting receptacle for those seven dishes of allegorical origin, " a 
feast of fortune," of which the following is a list, with accompanying sig- 
nifications : A rice cake, or "mirror dumpling," because it is made in the 
shape of the sacred mirror of the Shinto rites, and supposed to contain what 
is good for the digestive organs ; oranges laid on green leaves, meaning a 
" bequest from one to another ; " chestnuts dried and crushed, signifying 
victory ; persimmons, considered to possess medicinal value ; dried sar- 
dines, denoting conjugal fidelity, as the little fish never swim singly ; the 
ebi, a lobster, its long tentacles and curved back suggesting life so extended 
that the shoulders beconje bowed and the beard grows long and heavy ; 
last, a herring roe, that creature of the sea which is supposed to be the 
most prolific. This " table of elysium " is also emblematical of the three 
islands of youth located somewhere in the extreme corner of the sea-world, 
according to a Chinese legend, where all creatures retain perpetual youth, 
the birds and animals are of a pure white, and the palaces of the people 
are of gold and silver. 

" Young water," that is, water drawn from the well under the first rays 
of the light ushering in the new day and the new year, is used in preparing 
the tea, and the principal edibles are a special compound of six articles 
of diet, none of these being ever omitted, though they may be changed 
in the proportion of their amount, to suit the tastes of those at the meal. 
These foods are the mochi, rice cake ; imo, potato ; daikon, Japanese tur- 
nip ; aivahi, haliotis ; goho, a sort of burdock ; komhu, a kind of seaweed. 
In order to ensure good health during the twelve months to follow, it is 
deemed necessary that a goodly measure of sake should be quaffed from 
a bright-lacquered cup. This part of the custom is said to have been 
introduced from China centuries ago, and to have originated there with an 
old hermit, who made it a practice to distribute among the villagers on 
each returning New-year's Day portions of physic, with the injunction that 
if it was drunk with sake it would secure for the drinker a hale and hearty 
body. 

The most prominent feature of the decoration is the " pine of the door- 
way," festooned with the shime-Jiaiva, or rope of rice-straw. The first 
consists of small pines and bamboos placed on either side of the vestibule, 
the trees supposed to typify by their evergreen foliage long life. The pine 
became a part of tlie decoration about a thousand years ago, while the 



216 



THE FAR EAST. 



bamboo is a later addition by some five hundred years. The straw rope 
is of greater antiquity, and is emblematical of spring, and refers to the 
ancient morning when the goddess of sunlight was enticed from her cavern 
of darkness by the discontented gods of darkness, then overruling the 
earth, and the rope was placed across the entrance to the cave so she could 
not return to her underground abode. These ropes are the most important 
of the decorations, and are stretched not only across the entrance to the 
house, but before every other spot which the sunlight is supposed to 




A WINE CELLAR. 



benefit, such as the well, bathroom, sacred shelf, and inner court. Some- 
times a piece of charcoal is suspended from the rope, it being considered 
efficacious in warding off evils ; and a lobster, decorated with fern fronds, 
and indicating hardiness, is attached to the line. 

It is not held to be necessary to resort to the temples that the deities 
may be propitiated, though a few do it. The majority prefer to ascend 
the most convenient eminence in their neighborhood, and the entire party, 
joining hands, watch and sing as the new sun sends its virgin beams over 
the landscape. Later in the day small bodies of both sexes parade the 
streets, dancing and playing before the homes of the inhabitants. Besides 



JAPAN. 



217 



these are parties called " bird-chasers," which are made up of maidens go- 
ing about with wide coverings nearly concealing their features, while they 
play on the samisen, under the belief tliat this will drive away birds of 
ill-omen that are supposed to be fluttering on wing over the homes of the 
rich and poor. 

Among the pastimes held in high estimation at this time is the game of 
shuttlecock and battle-board, which found its way into Japan from China. 
Tradition gave the shuttlecock the shape of a dragon-fly, and attributed 




CHILDREN S FESTIVAL. 



to it the power to drive away mosquitoes. It lacked the battle-board, and 
the Japanese added that, — a thin, flat board of pine lacquered in red and 
gold on the back, and since adorned with pretty pictures. This game is 
played by the young of both sexes, and the Japanese maiden cherishes her 
battle-board next to her dolls, though she is very fond of the latter. 

On the day following New-year's there is a sort of semblance of resum- 
ing work and business, though this can be scarcely called more than a pre- 
tence. Three days later the men-of-arms resorted, in other years, to the 
practice of marksmanship, being careful to have the target large enough 
so that there could be no failure in hitting: it, lest their records for the 



218 THE FAR EAST. 

coming year should be unfavourable. Still three days more are allowed to 
pass, when the pine and bamboo decorations are torn down and burned, 
willow wands twisted and braided into artistic forms being hung from the 
eaves of the dwellings. With the burning of the decorations the observ- 
ances are practically ended, but it is considered a j)art of the same to 
allow the servants, male and female, on the fifteenth day the privilege 
of visiting their homes. On the twentieth day the closing scene is per- 
formed by the housewives, who offer rice dumplings to their toilet mirrors 
as an evidence of their culinary skill. 

For many centuries the '' five festivals of the seasons " have been 
prominent and ^favoured fetes. These are observed on the 7th day of the 
first month, the 3d day of the third month, the 5th day of the fifth 
month, the 7th day of the seventh month, and the 9th day of the ninth 
month. It will be seen that they occur with a numerical regularity which 
is striking. The Japanese seem to have a peculiar pleasure in such ar- 
rangements. 

The first of these festivals refers more especially to the domestic arts, 
and is largely a combination of stewing, brewing, and divination, called 
the " chopping of the seven herbs." The women are mostly concerned in 
its performance, which lasts through the earlier hours of the day. 

The second is a child's festival, during which dolls representing every 
trade, craft, and calling, civil and military, historical and legendary, are 
made. Each feature of these dummies is shown with an exacting fidel- 
ity to the original. The setting forth in display of these figures, often 
numbering a thousand, is both interesting and educating to its partici- 
pants. This month, March, with its toys and opening blossoms of spring, 
is primarily the month for the girls, and the little Japanese maids queen 
it right royally both at home and among their friends. 

The festival of the 5th day of the fifth month is especially a boy's f§te. 
This is given in honour of the birth of a male child within the past twelve 
months. The happy event is proclaimed by flying a paper or silk imita- 
tion of a carp from the top of a staff. Made of light material, and subject 
to every passing breeze, these banner-like objects can be seen streaming 
from hundreds and thousands of houses, until it looks to the beholder as 
if a flood of fish had been sent down upon the towns from the sky. The 
big eyes of the carp are considered to be typical of a persevering will, as 



JAPAN. 



219 



well as the indomitable spirit the fish displays in swimming up the streams 
against strong currents and cataracts. It being now the season of the 
iris and the sweet-flag, bouquets of the latter are conspicuous, while 
the sake drank on this occasion is seasoned with the petals of the former. 
Once warriors and battle-steeds figured prominently in these festivals, and 
displays of feats with the sword and mimic battles took place, but these 
warlike scenes have passed away with the new* order of things. The 
tango, as this is called, is of very ancient origin, and many legends of its 




TOY DEALER. 



association still live, though none explain definitely its rise and growth. 
One of the customs is to extinguish all the lights in the temples at the 
hour of the hare, so that the frightened animals may seek their homes 
without fear. 

May is the month of flowers. It is then that the cherry blossoms, 
which are the embodiment of all that is pretty, refined, and invigorating, 
according to Japanese ideals, are in the full flush of their glory. It is 
true that a single blossom has no special claim for admiration, and even a 
tree loaded w^ith its gems is worthy of but a passing glance, but it is 
when many of these gigantic flowering plants are massed and their foliage 



220 



THE FAR EAST. 



trained according to the taste of the artists that the grand effect is 
obtained. Broad avenues along river-banks are rendered transcendently 
inviting by them ; or a framework is made an enticing retreat by a 
network of these smihng messengers of summer and harvest. Cherry 
groves are the pleasure-grounds both of the young and beautiful, with no 

further care in life than 
the seeking after the 
many-hued bauble of 
love, and also of the 
gray-headed philoso- 
pher, who looks deeper 
into the mysteries of 
life, as well as of the 
poet, the artist, the 
labourer, and the noble. 
The purpose of the 
Japanese is to celebrate 
each season with appro- 
priate floral emblems, 
from which come the 
picnics of the wistaria, 
azalea, iris, lotus, 
peony, chrysanthe- 
mum, orchid, and the 
forests in their gor- 
geous autumnal tints. 
The ideal observance is 
that of the simplest 
nature. An expression 
of some tender senti- 
ment made in a couplet, the paper upon w^hich the verse is written sus- 
pended from the branch of a tree of especial interest, or from a blooming 
plant, is an example, the act being accompanied with outbursts of song 
more voiceful than melodious, and strains on that most unmusical of in- 
struments, the samisen. These are all outdoor fetes. 

The ceremonies of the sixth month are of a religious nature, and are 



f 




1 


ftjAyi^ 




J 




% 


! 


"J 


^ ^^i^Hpi- 


BlKa wT^^^^^jfiH 


^ 


mm -^. ^^ 




r 


k 



A FLOWKR GIKI. 



JAPAN. 221 

performed on the river-banks at twilight, where one of the Shinto priests 
sets up a rude cross, and prays for the peace of the households of that 
vicinity. As will be seen, this is a relic of Shintoism. 

At Kameido is celebrated a feast called the " First Rabbit of Japan," 
which is given in memory of the great scholar, Sugawara Michizane, who 
lived in the sixteenth century. On account of the interest he took in 
literature the poetical youths write long poems (so considered by them), 
and burn them as offerings on his tomb during these fetes. If the cinders 
from the flames float high in the air, or are wafted to a considerable 
distance, the author turns away with high hopes for his future success. 



CHAPTER XXIII. 

THE STAR LOVERS. 

IN early summer occurs a picnic which combines pleasure and business 
in a happy manner. It consists in seeking, as the tide ebbs, the shell- 
fish which are to be found buried in the sand under the water a few 
inches deep. Both sexes, old and young, find relaxation and satisfaction 
in this sport. The pleasure-seekers float out with the tide in a sort of flat- 
bottom boat, making the scene merry with snatches of song and music 
from the tinkling samisen. At the proper distance the boat is stopped, 
and the enlivening rout begins. In the midst of the active scene the light- 
hearted damsels soon lead their sterner rivals a lively competition. To 
overcome the disadvantage they might seem to have in the matter of 
dress, the wide sleeves of their loose-fitting waists are fastened up by bright 
cords crossing over the bosom, so as to give each owner of a white, well- 
rounded arm ample chance to plunge it into the water without wetting 
the garment. The bright-coloured underskirt is dexterously tucked up 
under a concealed girdle, and the fair water-nym23h is alive for work or 
sport. If there is a generous display of pretty ankles, it must not be sup- 
posed that it is made at the sacrifice of good taste or modesty. The 
Japanese see nothing wrong or imprudent in that which of necessity must 
be done. 

In the month of August, according to the present calendar, is a festival 
called most commonly Bon, which is dedicated to the ghosts of the de- 
parted friends, who are supposed to revisit the scenes of their earthly career 
at this season. Five days are given over to this fete, but the ceremonies 
are not elaborate. An altar of straw is raised on bamboo pillars, between 
which is hung the " sweet air rope " for the spirits to ascend. The floor 
is strewn with the leaves of the coxcomb and lespedeza, while imitations 
of horses and oxen are cut from melons, and a band of cedar-leaves is 
bound about the whole. Each dwelling has lanterns hung before its door 
to guide the visiting spirit, and at eventide of the second day little hemp 



IVrestlers 



JAPAN. 



223 



-fires are kindled to show them with greater plainness the way wdthin. On 
the sixteenth, the last evening, these tiny lamps are set to light the path 
of the departing spirit, and the festival is then over. 

During the ceremonies oniukae-dango, " cakes of welcome," and okuri- 
dango, ^^ cakes of 
farewell," are eaten, 
wnth other viands in 
keeping with the 
means of the house- 
holder. Throughout 
the entire reception 
of the departed 
friends making this 
annual visit a deco- 
rous demeanour is 
maintained, and no 
effort is made to win 
their favour. The 
whole purpose is to 
receive them as if 
they came in flesh 
and blood, kindly, 
courteously, and 
generously. 

The festival of the 
7th day of the 
seventh month has 
nearly lost favour, 
even in the remote 
districts where such 

customs linger longest. This consisted of cake offerings to the stars, 
based upon the legend of the herd-boy prince crossing the Heavenly River, 
the Milky Way, in order to keep his tryst with his beloved, the Weaver 
Princess. This was illustrated by vessels of water placed between rows 
of smoking incense set up in sticks. The object of this festival is ex- 
plained by the story of the star lovers. 




CATCHING SHELL -FISH. 



224 



THE FAR EAST. 



It all happened a long time ago, when the Sun, ruler of the universe, 
dwelt in his spacious mansion on the near bank of Silver River, which 
flows across the heavenly plain and is known to mortals now as the Milky 
Way. The Sun had a daughter named Ame-kujo, who. was very beautiful 
and gifted. She was an exceedingly industrious maid, and worked so 
constantly at her loom, weaving fairy-like fancies, that she became known 
far and wide as the Weaver Princess. The father was very proud of his 
lovely daughter, and he was greatly pleased over her industry, until at last 





^r- - 











A COUNTRY SEAT. 



he saw that she was growing moody and silent at her work. This troubled 
him sorely, for her vivacious spirit had been the light and song of the 
palace, when her speech had sparkled with witty sayings, and her counte- 
nance beamed wdth the cheer of a youthful heart. 

She had had many lovers, and her troubles were readily traced to these. 
Among her suitors was a noted warrior, grown gray in the service of his 
king. While he talked much of war and little of love, — which is not the 
way to win a maiden's heart, — her father favoured his suit, and frankly 
said as much to Ame-kujo. Then she confessed that she had plighted her 
troth to a herd-boy named Kinrin, who tended his father's flocks on the 



JAPAN. 



225 



bank of the Heavenly Kiver. Thereupon the Sun was so angry that, for 
a whole week, he kept his face veiled from the world behind black clouds. 
From that time the princess became very sad, and a great gloom gathered 
over the household. 

The warrior suitor saw this change, and wondered what it foreboded ; 
the herd-boy lover saw it, and knew it portended evil to him and his maid. 
When he found opportunity to speak to her, he bade her be of good cheer, 




A BEAUTIFUL GARDEN OF TOKYO. 



and hope for a happy fulfilment of their dreams. But the Sun would not 
listen to the pleadings of his daughter, and the grizzled warrior repeated 
his offers of matrimony frequently and stubbornly, though her only 
response was to ply the shuttles of her loom faster than ever. No more 
was she the merry, vivacious maid of yore. 

Finally the Sun decreed that Kinrin, on the 7th day of the seventh 
month, should be banished to the farther bank of the wide Silver River, and 
should remain there an exile for ever. Hearing of her lover's unhappy 



226 THE FAR EAST. 

fate, Ame-kujo stole down to the place of his starting, and there the 
unfortunate couple met and parted, as they believed, for the last 
time. 

The Sun had commanded all the magpies in the kingdom to gather with 
outspread wings, and thus make a bridge for the exiled youth to pass over 
the river to his future abiding-place. Kinrin saw through his tears the 
weeping princess, as she watched him out of sight. On the distant bank 
of the River of Heaven the magpies dispersed, leaving the disconsolate 
lover alone in his despair. 

The sadness of the days to Kinrin, as he followed his herd in the remote 
land, and that of Ame-kujo, while she plied her shuttles in her desolate 
home, cannot be pictured by a mortal. The warrior who had wooed her 
with such fiery w^ords, now that he saw the change in her once lovely 
countenance, refused to wed such a disconsolate bride. 

When he found that his daughter grew more and more dejected, 
and that she was going to die unless the burden of her sorrow was 
lig^htened, the Sun relented so far that he declared she and her exiled 
loA^er might meet on the 7th night of the seventh month of the 
coming year. She at once dried her tears, and something of her 
old-time lightness of heart returned, her spirits growing happier as 
the day she was to go to Kinrin drew nearer. The only fear was 
that the day might bring rain, when the river would be so swollen 
that she could not cross. 

But the very elements were her friends. The day came and departed 
without a shadow. At evenfall the stars set their bright watch in the 
sky, and joy reigned triumphant throughout all the heavens. The mag- 
pies came as they had the year before for the exiled herd-boy, and spread- 
ing wide their wings made a safe bridge for Ame-kujo to cross over the 
broad river to her lover. His surprise was more than equalled by his joy, 
and with such happiness as only the pure and faithful know, the two lived 
those happy hours of the stars. She must leave him before the Sun should 
return from his nightly pilgrimage, and with sorrowful hearts the lovers 
separated, their only solace being the hope that they might be permitted 
to meet again another year. 

In all the years that have fled since then, unless it be very stormy, on 
the 7th day of the seventh month, the faithful star lovers have met 



JAPAN. 



227 



in that far-off country of the sky, the great joy of their meeting made 
brighter by the hope that some time the banishment of Kinrin will be over, 
and that they will know no further separation. 

On the 1st day of the eighth month it was expected that a grand 
annual festival would be held at Yedo, now Tokyo, in commemoration of 
the entrance of lyeyasu, the founder of the shogunate, into that city. 
But modern Tokyo ignores all this show of military glory, and is happier 
in paying homage to the moon in the month which, according to the new 




LANTERN MAKERS. 



calendar, is fair September. There is an old saying in Japan that the moon 
of the springtime loses her brightest beams among the blossoms of the 
flowers ; in the summertide the water reflects her image in purer tints 
than her own light ; in the winter the north wind robs her rays of much 
of their lustre ; but in the autumn all nature is her friend, and rejoices to 
see her at her best. Thus the liarvest moon of Japan is the moon of 
festivities. Especially is this a poetic and romantic festival in the more 
thinly populated districts, where the old-time spirit still lingers, the laugh- 
ing waterfall vies with the moon in her transcendent beauty, and the noisy 
cataract seeks to attract by its tumultuous forces what it loses in other 



228 



THE FAR EAST. 



respects. Man, nature, and moon combine to make this tlie happiest 
event of a happy season. 

Three things are wanted to make this festival a success : the time, the 
moon, and water. Tokyo is well favoured in respect to the last hj the 
ri^er Sumida ; Osaka, by the noble Yodo, coming fresh from Lake Biwa ; 
and if Kyoto is less fortunate in this respect her people do not know it, so 
the result is the same. While this festival has lost much of its ancient 




BRACKET BRIDGE, FUKAGAWA. 



glory, it has gained in the new order of things. Generous display of fire- 
works, hosts of bright flying pennons, pretty, vivacious geishas, decked in 
their daintiest costumes, their most fascinating grace of manner, their 
gentle refinement of womanhood, all aid in making this the happy fete 
it is. 

A favourite place of holding one of these festivals was a bridge spanning 
one of the streams which drained the Fujiyama district. Upon building 
this bridge, in order to bring about the most good to the public, it was 
considered necessary to have the two happiest men in the province first 



JAPAN. 229 

pass over the new strAicture. In looking around for proper persons, the 
officials were exceedingly fortunate in finding two men who had each been 
masters of homes for threescore years, and whose wives and children, 
twelve in each family, were all living. Therefore these gray-headed patri- 
archs were chosen to lead the way across the bridge, which had been painted 
a bright red as an emblem of a light heart. The venerable twain were 
accompanied by their faithful wives, while behind these couples marched, 
two and two, according to their ages, their grown-up children, grand- 
children, and great-grandchildren, making a long procession. A vast 
crowd of spectators watched the train, laughing and shouting for joy, 
while showers of fireworks illuminated the night air, and the thunder of 
cannon shook the distant mountains. As Avas foretold then, the bridge 
has stood long and firm as proof of its happy beginning. 

This was better fortune than that which befell another structure of this 
kind, which a pow^erful daimio in the Keicho era decided to rear 
across the river that had witnessed one of his victories, as a monument of 
his prowess. But when he came to build the bridge there seemed to be no 
solid bottom to the stream upon which to raise pillars to support the long 
structure, with its picturesque curves and multitudinous feet like the centi- 
pede. Thousands upon thousands of stones were thrown into the river, 
but as often as the bridge was constructed it would sink into the bed of 
the river out of sight. In his despair and disappointment at being de- 
feated in what had seemed so slight a matter, when compared to his 
triumph over armies of men, Horio Yoshiharu swore by his beard that he 
would ultimately succeed. 

Now it had been a heaven-ordained rule among men that no person 
should cross a bridge without having a machi in the back of his hakama ; 
that is, a piece of stiff cardboard sewn into the garment to keep it smooth 
and in good shape. So when it was found that one named Gensuke had 
been accustomed to pass over this bridge as soon as it was reared without 
regard for this custom, the cause of the evil was quickly thought to have 
been found. Gensuke was instantly seized, and in order to appease the 
anger of the gods whom he had offended, he was buried alive in the bed 
of the river, where he sleeps to this day. The result was all that had 
been devoutly expected. The foundation for the pillars became as solid as 
the rock-ribbed hills ; so the bridge was completed with what speed was 



230 



THE FAR EAST, 



possible. There it stood firm and faithful for over three hundred years. 
The truth of this story was shown by the fact that the middle pier bore 
the name of the foolhardy man, and was known as the Gensuke-hashira, 
It was claimed by the believers that on moonless nights, at the dead watch 
between two and three o'clock, the pillar would be enveloped in a ghostly 
red light. 

In the idyllic season of early autumn the festival of the chrysanthemum 




MIYAXOSHITA RIVER. 



holds high place, and once Japan could justly claim the peerage of the 
world in this flower. If nature has been chary of her floral gifts to Dai 
Nippon, she somewhat atoned for this niggardliness by bestowing upon 
it the kikii, or world-famous chrysanthemum. The gardener, whose arts 
and skill in arranging beautiful parks abounding with artifical waterfalls, 
fountains, lakelets, rockworks, tiny bridges, and dwarf trees seem without 
limit, gives his best attention to this flowering plant. Sometimes he trains 
a number of these plants upon frames to represent scenes of national 
interest, and shows his love and adeptness in hundreds of ways. The 



JAPAN. 231 

emperor's gardens at Akasaka aferd a fine display of the chrysanthemum 
in its natural state. 

Formerly a royal banquet was held annually in honour of this flower 
at the imperial court at Yedo. Then the women in higher walks of life 
engaged in rivalry to see who should be the fortunate one to send a 
blossom which should be accepted by the consort of the reigning shogun. 
Sometimes great enthusiasm and excitement ruled. If this has all passed 
away under the new order of government, the love of the chrysanthemum 
still remains with the Japanese, and they do not cease to praise its fitness 
for decorative work, its prolificness of blossom, the ease with which it 
can be massed so as to portray historic and legendary and mythological 
pictures. To them it is, in its many varieties, " the moon-touched flower," 
'' the pearl of hearts," " crystal court," '' the sleep of the gray tiger," 
^' frost beam," "the jewel of the inner court," "the snow of the five 
lakes," and so forth. The festivals of the cherry blossoms and the 
chrysanthemums are the two fetes of the year when the climate and 
the hearts of the people join in unison to make the very most of a gala 
season. A garden of a type foreign to the country, as many other things 
have usurped the old ideas and fancies in Japan, is now opened in the 
golden month of October in Tokyo, when the aristocratic and official 
classes help to swell the vast crowd visiting the magnificent display. 

A prominent feature at the fairs which come late in the summer are 
great numbers of fireflies, imprisoned in horsehair cages, and for sale at a 
rin each. A rin, it should be remembered, compares to our mill. The 
Japanese have a sort of reverential respect for these little " earth stars," 
and among the pretty conceits related of them is the following : 

Once upon a time an old woodsman saw a little moon-child on the 
branch of a bamboo, and he captured the tiny creature and took her home. 
His wife was delighted with the newcomer, who lived with them for 
twenty years. As she grew older a brilliant light overspread her body, 
so that the forester's humble dwelling was filled with the sweet smile of 
her presence by day, and by night she moved about his home like a lamp 
of gold. The stars paled to dimness when she went abroad, and the moon 
became dark and angry with jealousy. 

Of course so fair a maid had many lovers, and among the others the 
emperor was so charmed with her beauty and sweetness that he wanted 



232 THE FAR EAST. 

to make her his bride. But a fairy had told her that twenty years would 
end her earthly existence, so she refused her lovers with kindly firmness, 
though without telling even the emperor her real reason. He became 
very angry, and threatened to take her a prisoner to his castle. But 
when he came to carry out his threat, lo ! she took flight on a moonbeam, 
in her fright crying tears of silver. Then Mother Moon relented, and far 
away from the pursuit of the distracted emperor took the fugitive in her 
warm arms. Not having told the emperor her reason for refusing him, 
the tiny maid did not feel that she had done right, so her tears took 
wings, and on summer nights can be seen flying about everywhere search- 
ing for the disappointed emperor. He died many, many years ago, an old 
man, keeping in his heart a love for the proud little princess who dared to 
refuse an emperor. 



CHAPTER XXIV. 

PASTIMES OF A PEOPLE. 

AMONG the native methods of sport and amusement are feats of 
acrobatic skill, running, jumping, wrestling, juggling, living stat- 
ues, trick monkeys, deformed animals, and shooting alleys, to say 
nothing of trials at archery, with bows eight or ten feet long and arrows 
of corresponding length. 

The oldest of all the sports and pastimes is that of wrestling, supposed 
to have had its origin over nineteen centuries ago, and to have held its 
popularity through all the changes and vicissitudes, rise and fall of power, 
during that long period. Tradition, which is ever ready to nurture 
history, declares that as long ago as twenty-five years before Christ the 
peace of the island empire was disturbed by the boasts of one Kehaya, a 
member of the emperor's body-guard. As this gigantic wrestler grew 
more and more arrogant in his manner, it was finally proclaimed that 
whoever should be able to throw him should receive high reward. Accord- 
ingly some of the strongest men began to practise for a trial with him, 
but when they came to meet him he overpowered them all. This made 
him more overbearing than ever, and he loudly boasted that no two men 
in the empire could master him. This called forth a challenge from a 
certain soldier who had never been credited with any skill in that direc- 
tion, and the bully quickly accepted. The venturesome soldier's name 
was Sukune, and everybody pitied him, believing he would meet the same 
fate as the others. But in this they were mistaken. Sukune had been 
preparing in secret for such a match for over a year, and when he came 
to contend with the mighty Kehaya he speedily overcame him, crushing 
him to the earth. Great was the rejoicing, and the victor was rewarded 
with a large estate in the Yamato province. He has the credit of fixing 
the code of scientific wrestling. 

Be this legend or history, in 720 A. d. wrestling was given its first royal 
sanction, when Emperor Shomo and his imperial court extended public 

233 



234 



THE FAR EAST. 



patronage to it. One Shiga Seirin, of Omi, was master of the arts and 
artifices connected with it. He understood the forty-eight kinds of 
clutches and holds, having been the originator of many of them, and 
knew the gradations belonging to the game. He improved upon many 

of the grips, and 
established him- 
self so well as 
master of the 
pastime that his 
successive de- 
scendants held 
the important 
and honourable 
position of chief 
umpire at court 
until the ex- 
tinction of the 
family line in 
1187, after 450 
years of credit- 
able rule. 

The honour 
next fell on 
Yoshida Oikase, 
of Echizen, one 
of whose lineal 
descendants is 
the present 
chief, and who 

is alone empowered to bestow upon the champion wrestler that badge of 
distinction which every ambitious follower of the order seeks as the ulti- 
mate reward of all his training and skill in overcoming his rivals, the 
yokozuna, a belt braided of two strands of white silk. 

Tradition delights in attributing great size to the champions of this 
pastime, picturing some of them as tall as seven feet, and weighing 
between four and ^\q hundred pounds. Such athletes among the slight- 




WRESTLERS. 



Japanese Actors 



JAPAN. 



235 



figured men of the race must have appeared like giants. It is needless 
to say that wrestlers of such wonderful size are not found to-day, though 
the contrast between their size and that of their countrymen is striking. 
It is nothing unusual to find those among them who stand six feet in 
height and weighing 250 pounds. This fact is accounted for by the cus- 
tom of selecting only youths of uncommon size for this calling, and these 
come principally from the labouring class, which, as we have said, possesses 
greater stature and muscle than the nobility. From the time of having 




ACROBATS. 



accepted this calling, the follower diets for the purpose, eating only the 
most wholesome food, and abstaining from all intoxicating drinks. 

The wrestlers of the country are divided into " camps " or factions, the 
Western and Eastern Camp. These are subdivided into classes, each with 
its champions. These camps hold grand matches in the spring and the 
autumn at Kyoto, Tokyo, and Osaka, and once a year in each important 
centre of the interior provinces. These trials take place within a ring 
formed by straw sand-bags. An umpire is given position inside the ring 
with the contestants, to see that the rules of the game are strictly fol- 
lowed, and to stop the battle as soon as he sees that one side is faltering. 



236 



THE FAR EAST. 



The rivals strip themselves of all garments that are likely to interfere 
with the free movements of limbs or body, and agree to obey all rules 
and restrictions, which are many and often look intricate to the onlooker. 
The umpire's duty is no slight matter, and he is often called upon to exer- 
cise strong expression 
of purpose to keep the 
wrestlers within the 
code of grips and 
thrusts . He who 
finally succeeds in 
J^^^^^ 40^^^ throwing his adver- 

sary outside of the 
circle of sand-bags is 
declared victor. Ut- 
most good feeling 
prevails inside the 
ring, but the specta- 
tors often become 
wild with excitement. 
One of the methods 
of rewarding the 
rivals is for members 
of the audience to 
throw their clothes to 
them, and redeem 
them afterward with 
money. 

The bout between 
the contestants is not 
limited to one day, 
but they are allowed ten days in which to end the struggle. The wrestlers 
are good-natured men, who never fall into the vulgar habits of the common 
brawler, and receive good remuneration for the following of their rugged 
calling. It is very seldom one of them transgresses the law, and an arrest 
is of rare occurrence. The goal toward which all are striving is the 
exalted position of tosU-ijori-yahu, or " elder." These distinguished mem- 




ACTOR AS AN OLD-TIME WARRIOR. 



JAPAN. 237 

bers are the organisers of matches, become referees, look after the finances 
of the camps, and take pupils for the profession. There are over eighty 
of these elders at the present time in the country, while there are several 
hundred wrestlers. 

Football, according to Occidental methods, has supplanted the old- 
style ke-mari, introduced from China more than a thousand years ago. 
The object of this game was to keep the ball always in the air, kicking 
it as high as possible. Goals were not arranged, neither was there any 
organised effort in the struggle. Te-mari, or hand-ball, is a pastime 
adapted to the feminine sex, and the young girls show great skill and 
grace in the manner which they play this popular pastime. There are 
numerous fanciful figures, calling out the ease and suppleness of movement 
for which the Japanese dancer is noted. During the game, as the actors 
pirouette and bound to and fro, the entire body of players keep time with 
some ditty sung in unison by the entire party. 

Among the youth of the opposite sex kite-flying is the favourite pas- 
time, even the adults deeming it not beneath the dignity of their age and 
experience. So deeply has this sport fixed itself on the people that special 
seasons are set apart for the trials. In some localities the boys look for- 
ward anxiously to the New-year's Day, as a time for kite-flying. On those 
occasions, the sky over some of the villages is literally peopled with kites 
of many sizes and descriptions. In some localities, the birthday of a boy 
is most properly celebrated by kite-flying, and, as soon as he becomes large 
enough to participate in the sport, he invites his friends to join with him 
in the merrymaking. On the day of the birth of a boy, his parents an- 
nounce the happy event by sending aloft one of the messengers of the air to 
announce the coming of the young heir, and also to illustrate with its lofty 
flight their high aims and ambition for the child. If the family belongs 
to the lower class, it must be content with a kite of small size, but if the 
parents are among the nobility, nothing short of a kite of enormous size 
will satisfy the soaring aspirations. Thus, those of this class are as much 
as thirty feet in diameter, and carry a tail of red and white, or pink and 
blue, in alternate folds that reach for more than three thousand feet. 
Soaring high among the clouds, this enormous kite, with its bright-col- 
oured appendages, presents a most beautiful spectacle, hundreds of people 
turning out to watch it. The moment it begins to descend, the watchers 



238 



THE FAR EAST. 



stand ready to seize hold of the tail, tearing off section after section, to 
keep as precious relics of the happy event. The affair is ended with a 
feast, to which all are invited. 

The grown people all over the islands have their seasons for kite-flyings 

but none is more 
famous than the great 
picnics of Nagasaki, 
which are enlivened 
with the spirit of 
rivalry and contest 
for the supremacy in 
this sport. The time 
set for these tourna- 
ments is three days 
in the beautiful month 
of ^lay, when the en- 
tire population turns 
out to witness or par- 
ticipate in the pas- 
time. Kites as large 
as twelve square yards 
and as small as a foot 
square, with bright 
fringes completely 
surrounding them, 
are sent upward the 
length of the holding-^ 
cord, usually from two 
to three hundred feet. 
These kites are of uniform shape, the frame being made of well-seasoned 
bamboo ribs, slightly convexed to the wind, and attached to the flying- 
cord by several lines fastened at regular intervals around the rim. The 
most important feature in their construction is the covering of powdered 
.glass placed deftly the entire length of the holding-line. The purpose of 
this is to cut whatever string it may touch of the other kites, and the great 
object is thus to cut loose as many of the other kites as possible. The kite 




APAXKSE KITK 



JAPAN. 



239 



thus sent adrift is lost to the owner, and becomes the property of whoever 
may be fortunate or skilful enough to capture it. In these two directions 
lies the interest of the occasion, and so furious becomes the rivalry that 
exciting scenes are sure to follow. Not only are the kite-flyers eager for 
the trial, but there are kite-catchers, who station themselves wherever they 
may imagine is 
good vantage- 
ground, those 
positions most 
elevated being 
considered most 
advantageous. 
Thus many of 
them climb into 
the tops of high 
trees, and there 
wait and watch 
for the prize. 
Should it happen 
that more than 
one person reaches 
the disabled kite 
at the same time, 
the one nearest 
the end of the 
string is consid- 
ered the fortunate 
person. If more 
than one can claim 
an equal advan- 
tage, the kite is cut into parts and thus divided. Women, often beautiful 
girls, vie with boys and men in this exciting pastime, and many a lover's 
fate has been decided in these tournaments. Once, at least, the fate of 
Nagasaki hung on a flying kite, when two factions contended for the hon- 
ours with an earnestness which threatened to end with a resort to spears 
and glaives in place of harmless kites. Fortunately the difference was 



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A TOY SKLLEU. 



240 THE FAR EAST. 

settled by a compromise, and peace again reigned. Usually the best of 
good humour prevails, and the results are accepted with commendable 
resignation. The cost of the shi-yen-kai, as this picnic is called, often 
depletes the pocketbooks of the most wealthy, all of which is taken as a 
matter of course. 

If Nagasaki prides herself upon the skill of her kite-flyers, and Toas 
holds her a good second, Suruga claims honour in the matter of size. The 
kites of this place are monsters of a thousand feet square, or of " two 
thousand sheets," as they are called. The term " sheet " refers to the 
number of sheets of paper of which the kite is constructed. One of these 
kites costs about six hundred yen, and requires a cable and twenty men 
to fly it. 

An extreme in the matter of size is found in the province of Owari, 
where the smaller the kite the greater the distinction. Here tiny affairs, 
miniature representatives of bees and cicadas, are sent aloft, attached to 
gossamer silk wound on ivory spindles. 



CHAPTER XXY. 

INDOOR RECREATIONS. 

A WHOLE volume of good size might be written on dancing and 
dancers without exhausting the subject. Probably no art or custom 
of the Japanese has been as severely criticised, and it is equally true 
that no part of their social life has been so little understood. In Japan 
the dancers knovf nothing of polkas, waltzes, or quadrilles, their aim being 
to represent some ideal picture, such as the festival of the cherry from the 
planting of the tree, and the bursting of the bud into blossom to the gath- 
erino; of the flower, or to describe some household scene or drama of war. 
The figures of the geishas are beautiful, and their entire action is pervaded 
with a grace and charm that must be seen to be appreciated. Dancing, 
according to Occidental ideas, has no place in Oriental life. In the former, 
that which portrays a happy motion of the dancer adapted to music is 
demanded, sometimes with a spectacular display, which is best illustrated 
by the ballet. In Japan these qualities are unknown. Here the art that 
pleases is the art which conceals the causes leading to the minutest result. 
We find all the grace of the Occident in the swaying of the body and the 
motions of the limbs, each of which is effected with a studied symmetry 
which deceives the unsophisticated spectator into the belief that he is look- 
ing upon that which is commonplace, when in reality it is something be- 
yond his comprehension. He does not at first appreciate the rhythmical 
motion which offers no muscular development, but portrays to the initiated 
some rare incident of ancient history, legendary tale, or family folk-lore. 
The natural ease and grace with which it is acted comes only from long 
training of the dancer, who, after all, must possess a hereditary gift in that 
direction. 

Dancing is taught the girls and boys as soon as they are able to go 
alone, and is never relaxed in the case of those who desire to become 
adepts. Few, if any, are lacking in the art, and public dances in which 
old and young, male and female, join in hearty response are of common 

241 



242 



THE FAR EAST. 



occurrence. Great events are generally observed and commemorated in 
this manner. One of the most noted dances of old time w^as that which 
lasted for a full week at Kyoto, soon after the capital was changed from 
Nara to. that city, near the close of the 'eighth century. Another Kyotoan 

dance is worthy of 
special mention on 
account of the won- 
derful varieties of 
costumes, and the 
great number of peo- 
ple taking part in it. 
This was an expres- 
sion of thanksgiving 
for the remarkable 
prosperity of the 
country, and each 
district represented 
was noticeable for 
its individual colour. 
The South, noted for 
a wonderful bird of 
crimson hue, chose 
scarlet ; the West, 
the lair of the gray 
tiger of legend, had 
white crape; the 
North, the seat of 
military power, was 
distinguished by a 
becoming dark hue ; 
the East, where the great dragon inhabits the dark green sea, was known 
for its light green silk. Upon these distinguishing grounds were woven or 
embroidered designs and decorations of almost every shade and shape 
imaginable. It is recorded that on one of the fields were to be seen such 
ornaments as "a nightingale perched on a spray of blossoming plum; 
silver trout splashing in blue streams ; snowy herons roosting among pine 




GEISHA. 



JAPAN. 



243 



boughs at the shrine of Gihon ; fiery maples glowing on Kwacho hillside ; 
rosy cherry petals floating over the Otowa waterfall, or the vulgar Venus 
embracing a mushroom on the Inari Mountain/' and innumerable other 
figures and designs as unique and beautiful, until it appeared as if the in- 
ventive skill of the 
weavers was with- 
out limit. Never 
before or since has 
such a picturesque 
concourse of people 
danced through the 
day in a maze of 
graceful and gro- 
tesque figures to 
the music of flute 
and drum. 
( Dancing is a 
prominent feature 
of the festival of 
the 7th day of the 
seventh month, 
when tiny misses, 
in high coiffures, 
spangled with silver 
pins and pink tor- 
toise shells, and 
decorated with 
richly embroidered 
satin robes, set off 
with a broad belt of embossed gold and purple designs, are among the 
leading characters. 

With the various dances and their checkered fortunes, it remained for 
the kanjin-no, commonly called now by its last syllable, to be put upon 
the stage as a part of the prelude to the acting. This was an ancient 
dance, which formerly fell from grace, to be placed by a daring admirer 
on the boards of the theatre in 1830, at a time when amusements of this 




A FLUTE PLAYER. 



244 THE FAR EAST. 

kind were condemned by the aristocratic class. His name was added to 
it, so it became known as the sensuke-no. This dance and its powerful 
auxiliaries, which may be said to have had two lives or periods of exist- 
ence, is purely a Japanese affair. Many of the other dances in Japan 
have been affected by Chinese influence, but this has not been the fate 
of the no, which has been compared to the drama of old Greece. To no 
other amusement do the Japanese lend their undivided interest as they 
do to this, and they never seem to tire of it, though the foreigner may 
witness it in disgust, and leave the place bored by its tediousness. 

From the dancing-child has sprung, within a little over two hundred 
years, a character in Japanese social life which finds no counterpart in any 
other country. Almost at the beginning of the reign of this singular 
person it was declared that she was undermining society, and the nobility 
excluded her from their places of amusement. So for a hundred years the 
dancers of this class were content to accept such adulation and encourage- 
ment as came from public resorts where the best morals were not expected. 
After this long interval of ostracism the dancing-girls were allowed to re- 
turn to good society, and they began to play an important part in polite 
circles. The picture of one of these *' sirens of society " is that of a pretty 
girl in her teens, with an exquisite figure and a refining grace in all her 
manner. She is so slight of form and airy of movement, in her brilliant 
robes and sparkling head-dress, that she appears like a butterfly hovering 
about a light. Her tiny feet keep perfect rhythm to the tedious humming 
of the samisen, her flowing sleeves and parti-coloured skirts of bewildering 
folds rising and falling, swelling and contracting, with each graceful curve 
and motion of her supple figure, the whole rendered more fairylike by the 
red flame of the paper lanterns. Although profusely ornamented, she is 
tastefully dressed, and appears both modest and demure, but with an arch- 
ness which gives piquancy and winsome delight to her manner. She is 
not only a model dancer, but she can play and sing, and is both witty and 
well informed. This is a description which does scant justice to the much- 
talked about, long-abused, and ever-admired geisha. ' 

The very name is against her fair reputation, for it denotes that she is 
not a part of a household, but an adjunct of a geislia-ya, a dance-house. 
It betrays to those knowing the meaning of the term that she is a party 
to a contract made by her parents or guardian to another who shall give 



JAPAN. 



245 



her employment for a certain number of years. This contract usually 
means for seven or ten years, a portion of the proceeds going to her, and 
the balance — the larger half — to him who has undertaken her charge. 
If she enters her service before the age of ten years, she commences as an 
o-shaku, or cup-bearer, and five years later becomes what is denominated 
the ippon. This 
means she has ad- 
vanced far enough to 
be entitled to an 
amount of compensa- 
tion, or " honorary 
tribute," of twenty- 
five yen, in payment 
of an entertainment 
lasting during the 
burning of one stick 
of incense. She is 
now allowed to leave 
her dancing to her 
younger companions, 
while she devotes her 
time to music. She 
plays accompaniments 
for convivial songs, 
sings herself, perhaps, 
and enlivens the 
whole entertainment 
with her vivacity and 
ready tongue, never 
lowering herself be- 
low the dignity of maidenly modestl}'. If she is particularly bright or 
pretty she soon becomes in great demand, and is often the recipient of 
what seems a good income. Besides this, she is entitled by license to 
pick up without question rewards along the by-paths of her calling. If 
she prefers to incur the risk of being found out without proper consent, 
she plies her arts in secrecy. While she improves these opportunities, 




HOUSE CLEANING. 



246 THE FAR EAST. 

either bought or stolen, she has another and culminating object in her 
little head. This is nothing less than to secure a lover who shall be able 
to promote her from this public career into a home of her own. Much 
has been written about the geisha, — dancer, singer, artist, and vivacious 
little minx, so deeply skilled in artifice as to lose sight of art, — and her 
cousin, the musume, — the dainty, plebeian, picturesque girl of the tea- 
house; but while the foreigner cannot help admiring and condemning 
both, he does not really understand either. ) 

In connection with what has been written here, the shadow of social 
sin is apparent on the bright surface of society. This becomes plainer 
when we learn upon investigation that the life of a geisha is not always 
lived as her personal choice might dictate. She, as a rule, becomes such 
through the request of her parents. They may be in straitened circum- 
stances, and take this method of paying off an indebtedness. Looking 
still deeper into the situation, we find that she is a sort of cousin to 
another class of unfortunates, styled yu-jo, who are always the direct 
object of a trade. Continental Europe licenses her social sin, and Japan 
follows her example, except that she does not parade or exonerate her 
vice. Although the unhappy party to this bargain has small voice in the 
original transaction, she has the privilege to break that contract at her 
own free will. If she seldom does this, who, not thoroughly conversant 
with the true condition, is able to pass judgment upon her ? That the 
delicate situation is felt and appreciated is shown by the fact that the 
wife of a Japanese gentleman has to show a respectable record for several 
generations back, and this fact more than anything else works against the 
marriage of the geisha, or yu-jo. The inhabitant of the Western world 
is perhaps most puzzled to know how it is that parents will become the 
prime factors in these unholy trades. Let them answer, not the victim. 

The drama was brought before the public in a somewhat romantic way, 
near the close of the sixteenth century. A famous dancer named 0-Kuni, 
having danced before the Shogun Yoshiteru, pleased that monarch so much 
that he granted her especial favours, and she became celebrated. But 
falling in love with one of the ruler's retainers, and their relations being 
discovered, she immediately lost public approval. Both losing their posi- 
tions, she suggested that they dance on the public sward for a living. In 
this manner, what had been a religious dance was converted into a profes- 



JAPAN. 



247 



sion of a profane character, though she made certain modifications to suit 
their purpose. Her part havipg been previously a character of historic 
representation, picturing the enticement of the sun-goddess from her 
cavern, the transition was easier. She and her husband performed for 
a livelihood. For 
some reason, she often 
assumed the part of a 
man, while he acted 
that of a woman. A 
rude platform was 
raised on the dry bed 
of the river, and they 
became known as 
"the river-bed folks." 
As might be expected, 
their patrons were not 
of the higher class, 
but they met with a 
success that enabled 
them to live comfort- 
ably. Soon others 
followed them, but it 
was a long time be- 
fore this establishment 
of a theatre was re- 
ceived with favour by 
the upper class. Seek- 
ing broader fields, 
and it may have been 
with the hope of elevating their standing, 0-Kuni and her husband, with 
a goodly company, repaired to Tokyo. But there was no river-bed for 
their rude theatre ; the danseuses deported themselves in a manner which 
brought down upon them public condemnation, so that finally, in 1643, 
government ordered that females should no longer act in public with men. 
The parts of females, if acted at all, should be taken by men. 

This edict brought into the field an actor who was capable of taking 




TEA -HOUSE GIRL. 



248 



THE FAR EAST. 



the feminine part of the play with a fidehty which defied the critics, and 
became so perfect that many refused to beUeve a deception had been prac- 
tised. This actor, whose name was Genzaemon, had followers who carried 
the art even farther than he, so that the refinements of feminine deport- 
ment, the rare quali- 
ties and grace of the 
womanly parts were 
so accurately repro- 
duced that it seemed 
incredible that such 
lifelike playing was 
the work of the male 
sex. The restriction 
forbidding women to 
appear on the stage 
has been removed, 
but such as have 
attempted the his- 
trionic art have been 
so low in morals that 
they have not re- 
ceived public recog- 
nition. The theatre 
is now patronised by 
the better classes, but 
the actors have failed 
so far to win their 
way into the good 
graces of society, and 
they are not hkely to until they have elevated the standard of their own lives. 
There are no chairs in a Japanese theatre, and the spectators must sit 
on their knees. The parquet is a bare floor, having neither benches, chairs, 
nor aisles. The better portion of the crowd sit within an enclosure sep- 
arated by a rail, and corresponding to our parquet circle. This is raised 
about two feet. Between acts children are allowed to go upon the stage, 
and play at their will. If the heat is oppressive, as it often is, men appear 




AN ACTOR. 



JAPAN. 



249 



quite naked, except for the loin-cloth, and the women do not hesitate to 
remove their clothing entire to the waist, no one thinking it improper 
to do so. 

Among the more intellectual entertainments the gundan, or war-story, 
deserves to rank first. This comes nearest to our lecture of anything in 
Japanese life, and has served more than all else to maintain an interest 
in the past history of the country, and to inform the people of its secrets. 
Until this form of public entertainment was instituted by some Buddhist 




ACTORS. 



priest, the common class was in woeful ignorance of the warlike aims and 
deeds of the patricians. In fact, such matters were not allowed to be 
discussed, and even the literature of the times contained nothing more 
than the bare ;:nention of military events from time to time. For this 
reason even the patricians became densely ignorant of the history of their 
country. Thus, when the friars of mediaeval Japan, who were possessors 
of this knowledge, began to give their recitals before patrician audiences, 
the gundan immediately became very popular. But it was two and a half 
centuries later before the lectures were given publicly, so that the common 
class could listen to these military classics. 



250 THE FAR EAST. 

This popularity came about through the misfortunes of one of the 
sumarais, who had figured prominently in the gorgeous pageants of his 
earlier years. As a means of making a livelihood, he stationed himself 
within the court of the temple of Twmma Tenjin at Kyoto, when a festi- 
val was in process, and began to relate in stirring language some of the 
scenes in which he had played a conspicuous part. The worshippers at the 
shrine soon gave him an attentive ear, and he reaped undreamed-of reward 
for his vivid portrayals. Others, seeing his success, and in need of such 
means to earn a livelihood, rather than to seek the vulgar calling of a 
trade, imitated his example. In this way men came to devote their whole 
lives to perfecting the art of oratory, so that, in time, the lecture became 
not only a favoured way of entertainment, but no little talent was dis- 
played by the raconteurs. The narrator, or koshaku-shi, is no mere 
declaimer from some arbitrary text ; what he has to tell has not been re- 
corded in any public document. He moves through his recital with all the 
effectiveness of an actor, each part of his narrative being in perfect accord 
with the customs and environments of the period he describes. He at- 
tempts no dramatical display, but, seated on a mat before a desk, holding 
in one hand a fan and in the other a paper baton, he begins in a simple 
manner, gradually rising in earnestness and intensity, as he forcibly 
describes the passions that swayed the hearts of men, the gentle influence 
of women, the anxious prelude to battle, the clash of the contestants, — 
the swiftly-moving baton, as it falls sharply upon the wooden lecturn, 
giving a vivid idea of the shock of arms, the din of the armed combat- 
ants, the dash and surge of the wild hordes; and then the climax, the 
broken ranks retreating in wild disorder, and the hoarse cries of the 
victors, — all depicted with remarkable fidelity, until the spectators behold 
with their mind's eye the entire picture from beginning to end. 

The amount of good done by these lecturers in imparting information to 
the masses can scarcely be estimated, and yet they are poorly paid, except 
in rare cases of the masters of the art. The followers of this profession 
are divided into what are considered schools, each division tracing its origin 
to some successful originator of that style in the past. All are devoted to 
particular descriptions of some feature of history, such as the treachery of 
some important clansman, the quarrel of some powerful chief, some critical 
point in the condition of the country, the rise of some obscure warrior, the 



JAPAN. 251 

career of some renowned hero, the romantic love episode of an ancient 
gallant, and similar deeds and situations as may be easily imagined as 
belonging to the history of the romantic feudal age. There are over three 
hundred lecturers in Tokyo alone, many of them men of marked literary 
and oratorical ability. There are the tragedians, while there are those 
following a different line, who aim simply to amuse. This class take for 
their themes only romantic incidents, appealing to the sympathy or pleas- 
ure of their audiences. 




A BROOM SELLER. 



CHAPTER XXVI. 



WHEN THE WORLD WAS NEW. 



IT was fifteen hundred years ago, under the reign of Emperor Richu, 
the seventeenth in descent from the first mortal sovereign, Jimmu, 
that an attempt was made to weave a history out of the confused 
mass of traditions and mysticisms enveloping the origin and rise of 
the Japanese people. From that date, 400 a. d., the history of the island 
empire may be readily divided into five periods, viz. : the first, beginning 
with the legends of the misty ages, and ending with the establishment 
at Nara of the wandering court of the Empress Jito in the early part of 
the eighth century ; the second, comprising the early civilisation of Nara 
and Kyoto, ending with the twelfth century ; the third, the era of civil 
wars, which closed with the battle of Sekigahara, 1600 ; the fourth, the 
period of the Tokugawa shogunate, closing in 1867 ; the fifth and last, 
consisting of the late years of foreign intercourse and Japanese progress 
under the present emperor. 

It is not an easy task to trace the origin and growth of this people ; to 

252 



JAPAN. 253 

discover amid the shadowy army of mythological beings the first ruler, 
Jimmu ; to describe the dynasty he is said to have founded ; to portray 
the civilisation that was built upon the ruins of tradition ; the arts and 
literature that flourished amid such surroundings as we of the American 
Republic cannot understand, and at that period when the glory of this 
vast continent emanated from glittering temples and golden shrines, which 
have long since crumbled into ruins, without leaving a record of their 
builders. But if the blotted pages are filled with a bewildering array of 
rival rulers in all stages of power, a shifting rabble of worshippers at 
shrines dedicated to a medley of deities whom nobody professed to under- 
stand, until it is impossible to sift out the real from the unreal, and fix the 
actual situation in the mind, above the clashing of arms and confusion of 
scenes, as the image of the unsheltered Bronze Buddha remains to attest 
to the one-time glory of the Genji clan at Kamakura, while the dust of its 
castles has mingled with the sand of its plains, and the glitter of arms 
is drowned in the changeless sea, so here and there along the path of ages 
some stalwart figure, entwined with stories of heroism and nobility, stands 
out in bold relief. Foremost among these appears the Goddess of the Sun, 
who, in the traditions of a vivid-minded race, was the mother of royalty ; 
at the head of the dusky army of the ancients rises the Empress Jingu ; 
next on the shifting stage the invincible Hideyoshi, the Taiko, and the 
Caesar of the Middle Ages ; lyeyasu, the Augustus of the Golden Age ; and 
then Keiki, the Cromwell of the Tokugawa shoguns. When we have seen 
these resume their places in the dazzling retinues, and noted their victori- 
ous marches, we have brought Old Japan before us, with its simplicity of 
common life, its gorgeous military pageants, its heroism and patriotism, 
its cruel ambitions, its displays of the love of life, and its remarkable 
indifference to death. 

Whether the people now inhabiting Dai Nippon originally sprang from 
mixed races, and, if that were true, whether they were aliens to these 
islands, remains to-day a mooted problem, though the theory to be advanced 
here is that accepted by the majority of historians and antiquarians. As 
we are about to follow this trail of the races, our Japanese friend gravely 
reminds us that the very earliest inhabitants were descendants of the god- 
dess that dwelt upon Tokama-no-hara, or the Plains of High Heaven. We 
lend a respectful attention while he relates the tradition of the gods. 



254 



THE FAR EAST. 



In the misty past, before time, when all the world w^as chaos, and the 
stars and moon, the earth and sky, were formless and only a vapour, was 
the birth-time of the gods. Then only phantom shapes flitted hither and 
thither across the space of eternity, as clouds drift over the surface of the 
heavens. An immense bulrush-bud, piercing the infinite distance, gave 
birth to the first deity. This was followed by others, until, after three 
generations of created objects, and where the tip of the bulrusli had 
pierced the space, four pairs of heavenly spirits came into being. For the 




A COOPER. 



first time a division was now made, and the last pair of gods were given 
the task of creating the earth. This couple, the source of all life, were 
Izanagi, the God of the Air, and Izanami, the Goddess of the Clouds. A 
fathomless gulf lay at that time between heaven and the chaos of region 
beyond, the space spanned by a floating bridge of heaven, one end se- 
curely upheld on a mountain peak and the other on the wall of distance. 
This pair, walking on the bridge, marked the" void below, and the God 
of Air said to the Goddess of the Clouds: "Let us visit the king- 
dom beneath. There needs be a firmament there." Then he struck 
his jewel-tipped spear into the mass below them, and from the pearly 



JAPAN. 255 

drops congealing on the point, an island was formed in the boundless 



region. 



The earth-maker and his companion then descended the Heavenly Bridge 
to see what sort of a country had been formed. The sight of it pleased 
them so much that Izanagi called up a high mountain to hold the end of 
the floating bridge, and he and Izanami, pledging themselves to wed and 
remain together on the earth, set out separately to explore its distant parts. 
He followed the foot of the mountain toward the east, and she going 
toward the west, they kept on until eventually they came in sight of each 
other. Upon discovering him afar off, the Goddess of the Clouds exclaimed, 
with undisguised admiration, " How pleasant it is to meet such a noble- 
looking youth!" Wishing to be equally as gallant he replied, "Not so 
pleasant as it is to meet such a fair and lovely maiden." The couple then 
completed their marriage by clasping hands and began to set in order their 
new home. 

Soon afterward their bright prospects began to darken. The new lands 
created by Izanagi proved barren and desolate ; their first-born son was 
weak both in body and mind. Disappointed in each other and everything 
about them, they returned to the palace of the heavenly spirits, when they 
wei^e told that all their misfortunes had taken place because Izanami had 
been the first to speak at that meeting beyond the mountain world. To 
recover the treasures they had lost they must woo and wed again, being 
careful this time to obey the divine injunction. The couple again crossed 
over the floating bridge, and Izanagi speaking first when they met on their 
journey around the mountain, great happiness came to their lot. They 
created all the islands of Dai Nippon, and from the foam of the rolling 
breakers, as they surged against the mainland, was formed China and the 
rest of the world. They had children born to them, the Ruler of Rivers, 
the Deity of Mountains, the God of Forests, and the Goddess of Flowers. 
Izanagi was much pleased, but as he looked around over the beautiful 
landscape, lonely in its glory, he said, " There should be one higher and 
nobler to rule and protect this fair world." 

A daughter was born to this couple, and her beauty was so dazzling and 
her deportment so regal that nothing below a throne in high heaven would 
suit her station. She was Amaterasu, the Sun Goddess, and the joy of 
Izanagi was so great that he exclaimed : "She shall rule the universe 



256 



THE FAR EAST. 



from the Blue Plain of High Heaven. Her clear smile shall gladden the 
whole world. Fleecy clouds shall be her handmaidens, and glistening 
dewdrops her messengers of love." 

After the birth of the Goddess of Light a son was born to the happy 
ddities, and as his was a dreamlike beauty of the gentle evening, he was 
given a home in the far sky, and given alternate rule with his sister. His 
name was Tsuku-yomi, the Moon God. Izanagi and Izanami had other 




A GAKDEX CASCADP: 



children, who were not blessed with such g\orj. Two may be mentioned, 
the God of Fire and the more to be feared Susa-no-o, who preferred shadow 
to light, whose smile was a blight to flowers and plants, and who was 
given the sovereignty of the sea. He soon became extremely jealous of 
his sister Amaterasu, and resigning his kingship over the ocean reigned as 
the Moon God, in the hope that he might better outrival her. 

The Sun Goddess was loved by all, and under the benign influence of 
her smile the earth yielded up from its treasure-house the iris and orchid, 
the cherry and plum blossom, the pine and bamboo, the maple and wistaria, 



JAPAN. 



257 



the rice and hemp. The mountains were clothed in deep green vestments, 
the plains strewn with flowers, and the Inland Sea veiled in silvery gauze. 
She had but to whisper her wish and it was answered. While she plied 
her shuttles celestial maidens sang of the joy and peace on earth. 

Susa-no-o looked on all this by night and was angry from jealousy. So 
he did everything in his power to make existence miserable for his siste , 
who finally fled to a cave to escape his persecution. The universe was 
then plunged into darkness, and strife and turmoil reigned supreme. The 




IRIS GARDEN. 



gods, becoming alarmed for the welfare of every beautiful thing, and even 
for their own safety, assembled to see what could be done. Knowing that 
the Sun Goddess alone could save them, they began to devise plans to call 
her forth from her retirement. But plan after plan was tried and failed, 
until that of the magic mirror was resorted to. Great fires were built 
about the entrance to the cave, and eight hundred merry maidens were 
told to laugh. As the merry peals of laughter made the earth tremble, 
Amaterasu looked shyly forth to discover that it was light, when she had 
supposed that darkness was reigning. Upon asking what this meant, she 
was told that a goddess rivalling her had come among them. She believed 



258 



THE FAR EAST. 



this when she gazed into the mirror and saw her own matchless reflection. 
This caused her to step outside the cave, and, to stop her from returning, 
a rope of rice-straw was deftly drawn across the entrance. The eight hun- 
dred merry deities cried out, " May the Sun Goddess always stay with us." 
Thus darkness was driven from the world and happiness and rejoicing 
again held sway. 

But if freed from darkness, the earth was still peopled with evil spirits, 




GARDEN AT KAGOSHIMA. 



and there was no peace by day or night. Then the deities decided to send 
some one down to quell the wild riot and prepare the people for the rule 
of Amaterasu's grandson, Prince Generous-Giver. But of the agents sent 
to do this difficult task, as many as three failed. One lost courage at the 
very outset ; another fell a victim to the violence of the mob ; and still 
a third was captivated by the blandishments of a beautiful maiden who 
met him on the seashore. He found life here so fascinating that he forgot 
his mission, even forgot his brother deities, and revelled in the toils of a 



JAPAN. 



259 



vulgar life. Finally the Sun Goddess sent a pheasant to inquire why her 
messenger tarried so long. But the delinquent deity was so angry over 
the appeal of the bird that he shot her with a bow and arrow. The 
pheasant fell, and the arrow continued its flight to the feet of the Goddess 
of the Sun on her throne in high heaven. Anticipating that evil had 
befallen her loved pheasant, from the blood on the shaft, she sent the 
arrow back to earth, with the injunction that it find the evil-doer. 

A mighty storm arose soon after, and on its wings the dead body of 




AN INLAND SEA. 



the faithless prince was laid at his father's feet. Then there was weeping 
and wailing, for he had been dearly beloved, and a great mourning-house 
was raised. But in the midst of this lamentation a brother of the dead 
prince appeared, and was mistaken for the traitor. This so offended the 
former that he cut down the mourning-house with his ten-grasp sword, 
and scattered the ruins to the four winds of heaven. 

This feat caused the others to declare that he, Taku-Mika, was the very 
one to subdue the evil spirits below. In answer to Amaterasu's request 
he started at once on his warlike mission. He was accompanied by a 
boon companion named Tori-bune. Upon reaching the shore of the 



260 THE FAR EAST. 

troubled land, in what is now the province of Idzumo, the doughty twain 
placed their swords on the crest of the waves, and seated themselves on 
the points of the weapons. In this manner they were able to defend 
themselves from the evil spirits of the earth until they had conquered 
them. 

The Goddess of the Sun was greatly pleased over the exploit of her 
latest emissaries, and she at once instructed her grandson, Ninigi, Prince 
Generous-Griver, to go at once to the earth and begin his reign, which she 
foretold would be one of peace and plenty, and from this fact he became 
known as " Ruddy-Plenty, the Rice Prince." Among the treasures that 
she gave him was the famous mirror, which had restored light to the 
world. 

Prince Ninigi looked on the vast pine forests, the reed plains and the 
mountains, the rivers and seas, and was greatly pleased with his domains. 
But this son of the gods was lonesome in the midst of his plenty, until 
he met one day on the shore of the Inland Sea a maiden of such loveliness 
as he had never dreamed. Falling in love with her, and learning that she 
was the daughter of the Spirit of the Mountains, he sought her father to 
ask for her hand in marriage. Now it so happened that this deity had an 
older daughter who he was especially anxious should wed before her 
sister. But she was very plain, and Ninigi would not take her in place 
of the beautiful Ko-no-hane, Princess Tree-Blossom. This so angered the 
older sister that she exclaimed in ansrer : " You have made a foolish 
choice. Had you chosen me, you and your children would have lived to 
a good old age ; but as you have chosen my sister, all your children and 
children's children will perish as the blossoms of the trees." This explains 
why human life is not as long as that of the gods who lived on earth 
before the advent of man. But Prince Ninigi and his beautiful wife were 
very happy during their mortal life, and from them have descended the 
royal rulers of Dai Nippon. 



CHAPTER XXVII. 

THE YIKINGS OF THE FAR EAST. 

THESE legends of the early gods of Dai Nippon form a mythology 
wilder and more poetical than the descent of Ishtor as seen in the 
weird, supernatural visions of the Assyrians, and as grand and 
daring as the sublime entrance of Odin into the realms of Northland. 
The study of the traditions of these heavenly deities and their descendants 
is necessary to those who desire a better knowledge of the underlying 
motives of the Japanese decorator, who enlivens his art with living 
figures. It is also one of the richest fields of romance to be found in the 
ranges of imagination, and cannot fail to afford the antiquarian and seeker 
after legendary lore the highest reward. 

Admitting that the Japanese have as sacred rights to their claim of a 
descent from the gods, as the many other races of men who have held to 
a divine origin, their traditions do not deny that these " heavenly comers " 
found at least one race of human beings already occupying the country 
they eventually possessed. 

These early inhabitants, who, the antiquarian claims, were themselves 
usurpers, were the ancestors of the peculiar race already described as 
living on the island of Hokkaido, and known as the Ainu. The position 
of the islands of Japan in their close proximity to the mainland of Asia, 
the cradle of the races, would not only indicate, but seems to prove, that 
this race came from that country. If they had come hither across the 
narrow waterway, is it improbable to say that others came before and 
after them ? In point of fact, the traditions of Ainu declare that an 
anterior tribe of pit-dwellers lived on the islands. Descendants of these 
are still to be found among the inhabitants of the Kuriles and Kamchatka. 
The Ainu were themselves of a Hyperborean race, emigrating from the 
cold regions of northeastern Asia to the more genial clime of Dai Nippon. 
They evidently drove out their predecessors, who were not numerous, on 
a triumphal march southward, as they in turn were headed northward 

261 



262 



THE FAR EAST. 



in later generations, and made to retreat over the same ground their 
ancestors had first taken. The Ainu were originally cave-dwellers. To- 
day it does not seem that they left any stronger mark upon their 
conquerors than the North American Indians did upon their victors. 

This does not show, as it might be supposed to, that the Japanese are 
a pure race. There is a marked distinction between the two classes of 
Japan, the patricians and the plebeians. The latter have a darker skin. 




COLOSSAL PICTURE ROCKS, ISHIYAMA. 



coarser features, straight eyes, a forehead denoting a lower intellect, and 
a more robust physique. There being this difference, it is evident that we 
are again shown two tides of immigration, the inferior once more leading 
the superior, and eventually becoming their subjects. The conquerors in 
this case, from whom are descended the aristocratic class of to-day, were 
of slight build, a complexion varying from almost white to yellow, eyes 
set obliquely to the nose, with heavy lids and high eyebrows, small mouth, 
oval face, and aquiline nose. The limbs were symmetrical and the hands 
shapely. This race dwelt in wooden houses, kept domestic animals, such 



JAPAN. 



263 



as the dog, fowl, and cattle, wove hempen cloth, elaborated their dress 
with various trimmings, wore ornaments of jewels, and protected their 
faces with veils. The women Avere good cooks, and had various dishes 
among their household utensils, while the men forged knives, swords, 
and spears out of iron, and fashioned bows with feather arrows. This 
race, then, with superior intellect and enlightenment, was the heavenly 
immigrant that tradition says came to Tokama-no-hara, which has been 




RIVER BANK OF MUKOJIMA, TOKYO. 



identified with the more modern Yamato. If this gives romance a tre- 
mendous shock, history receives a corresponding thrill of pleasure. Before 
passing on to a closer consideration of the coming of this people, it may 
be well to say that the Japanese themselves consider this ancient body of 
immigrants as distinct from the Chinese, having come from the interior 
of India through Manchuria, northeast China, and on to Japan. What- 
ever closer affinity the Japanese of to-day holds to the Mongolian may 
have been acquired by centuries of desultory intercourse. 



264 THE FAR EAST. 

Allowing that Japan possesses two types of inhabitants closely inter- 
mixed, the earlier immigrants seem to have drifted hither from the 
Malayan coast, and must have come in large numbers, and the Ainu 
at that time could not have numbered less than several millions. With 
these Malayans came also another stream of adventurers from the Corean 
peninsula by an easy route. The legends of Izumo show^ that these people 
played an important part in the ancient scenes of southern Japan. This 
brings us to the last and most important flood of immigration. 

The Kojiki, or " Book of Old Traditions," reduced to writing at Nara 
in 712 A. D., and the chronicle, Nihon-gi, give us the first glimpses into the 
early history of Japan. However reliable these accounts may be, they go 
back to 663 b. c, thus covering 1,375 years. The Kojiki opens with an 
account of one Kan Yamato Iware, then a man of fifty, and the fifth in 
lineal descent from the Goddess of the Sun. This warrior, since styled 
Jimmu Tenno, " spirit of war," set forth from the east coast of the island 
of Kyushu, on a voyage of conquest, and, after a stormy passage, reached 
the Bay of Osaka. Here he was met by the Malayan hosts, but, after 
driving them back, succeeded in establishing himself at a place which he 
named Yamato, which was a part of his own name. He was accompanied 
by two brothers, having left a third at home. 

When the maze of tradition, from which this account is taken, is con- 
sidered, it can hold but slight claim to fact. But upon two points all 
ethnologists agree : that there was an invasion of this kind at some time, 
and that the invaders were Mongolians. Thus, having no proof to the 
contrary, it may be well enough to consider that in the sixth century, 
before our era, Jimmu Tenno, in the province of Yamato, founded the 
imperial dynasty of Japan. He and his followers evidently worshipped 
the sun as their god. They were the vikings of the Far East, who had 
boldly set forth to conquer and rule. In his long career of warfare, 
Jimmu lost his brothers, two by sword and one by noble self-sacrifice, 
the two highest forms of death, according to Japanese belief. He himself 
was the very model of daring and skill in war, hence his immortal name, 
"the man of divine bravery." 

The chronicles are filled with scenes of battle. It seems apparent that 
after a few struggles, in which the followers of Jimmu were successful, 
he and his warriors formed a sort of alliance with the Malayan inhabitants 



JAPAN. 



265 



to overcome the Ainu or Yezo race, who hovered close upon their northern 
boundary.^ The ancient chroniclers speak of no attempt to seek terms of 
peace with the aborigines, but from the outset it was a matter of extermi- 
nation by the stronger party. Many and desperate encounters are depicted 
in vivid language. The weapons used by the Ainu were spears, bows and 
arrows, and a sort of sling which threw a deadly missile. Jimmu's warriors 
wielded iron swords, bamboo spears, whose points were tipped with iron 




GENTLEMAN S VILLA, BANCHO. 

or copper, and bows and arrows, the latter having points of iron or stone. 
On many a hard-fought field the ground was strewn deep with the bodies 
of the slain, while slowly, foot by foot, the stubborn Ainu were driven 
toward the north, until at last, near the close of the eighth century, 
the main island was cleared of them. 

1 Tradition goes on to say that Jimmu and his warriors really suffered defeat in their first battles, 
and, upon holding a council to ascertain the cause, they decided that they had offended the gods by 
waging their warfare from west to east, a course contrary to the journey of the sun. Thereupon, they 
made a circuitous voyage to the south, to land at Arasaka. Marching now in a westward direction, as 
belonged to worshippers of the sun, they were everywhere victorious, until Jimmu and his followers 
entered the fair land of Yamato and established themselves there. 



266 THE FAR EAST. 

It is maintained that, during the latter part of this long period of war- 
fare, the national anthem of Japan was composed, and sung by the armies 
of many different leaders as the soldiers rushed into battle. The follow- 
ing is the Japanese composition : 

^' Kimi ga Yo wa 
Chi yo ni, Ya chi yo ni, 
Sazare ishi no 
Iwa wa to narite, 
Koke no musu made." 

Sir Edwin Arnold has given us the following excellent translation : 

" May our Lord's dominion last 
Till a thousand years have passed, 

Twice four thousand times o'ertold ! 
Firm as changeless rock, earth-rooted, 
Moss of ages uncomputed 

Grow upon it, green and old ! " 

This is necessarily a somewhat free translation, for, as simple as the 
poetry of Japan appears, having no rhyme and no attempt at measure, 
it is really difficult, it might be said impossible, to catch the original spirit 
in any other language. 

In those early days of conquest, the women of the followers of Jimmu 
proved themselves worthy of the companionship of warriors. The code 
of honour among the samurai class, which caused every woman to carry 
under her girdle a short dagger, which she was ready to plunge into her 
heart, if she were not able to reach that of her betrayer, rather than bear 
the ignominy of dishonour, was no more rigid in the days of feudalism 
than it was in the viking age of Japan. Cases are frequent in both 
periods where wives and mothers have killed themselves that their hus- 
bands or sons might be free to go to war. It is related of olden times 
that an archer failed to get the proper force to the flight of his arrow 
on account of his inability to hold back the shaft long enough to obtain 
the full power of the bow. Seeing his weakness, his young wife, holding 
in her arms their beloved baby, stepped in front of the husband, and made 
him try over and again to pull back the arrow, until it Avas proper to let 
it fly. Nerved by the terrible consequence of death to those he loved. 



A Cottage Garden, Kamakuta 



JAPAN. 



267 



death by his own hand if he should fail, the man finally overcame his 
weakness, to become a famous archer. 

In those days woman's opportunity was greater to become distinguished, 
especially in war, than it was in the period of more recent civilisation, 
when she was forced to seclude herself from the public gaze. To woman 
belongs the glory of the first conquest of Japan and the initial introduction 
of Asiatic arts, religion, and enlightenment. 

Near the close of the second century a rebellion broke out in Kyushu, 




YENOSHIMA. 



the native land of Jimmu, and the reigning emperor of the island empire 
collected his warriors and set forth to put down the insurrection. As 
usual, the Empress Jingu accompanied her husband, and stopping at an 
island in the Inland Sea to offer her worship at one of the shrines, she was 
advised by one of the gods to counsel her husband to abandon this expedi- 
tion to Kyushu, which could not result in any great profit, as the region 
in revolt was poor, and to undertake a campaign against a more distant 
country of vast wealth, where a bloodless victory would be assured him. 
She believed this, but she could not make him over to her views. He did 
consent, however, to ascend the highest mountain in those parts to look 



268 



THE FAR EAST. 



for the promised land, saying upon his return, " I see no land beyond the 
water. Unless there is a country in the sky, you have deceived me. My 
ancestors worshipped all the gods, pray from whom did you get this 
information ?" 

So the emperor continued his expedition, and lost his life without quell- 
ing the rebellion. Then the dauntless Jingu rallied the shattered army, 
to be successful in routing the rebels. After this victory, confident the 
gods were to favour her, she prepared to carry out the plan of conquest in 




HAKONE. 



distant seas. She called about her the ablest war-chiefs of Japan, and 
disclosed her ambitious scheme, saying in conclusion, " I leave all the 
details to you. I am only a young woman, and, for fear the soldiers dis- 
trust the wisdom of an undertaking led by a woman, I shall disguise myself 
as a man. If we remain here in idleness, the safety and prosperity of our 
country must suffer. If we make this venture successfully, the treasures 
of a rich kingdom will be ours. It depends very much upon you for 
success, and the glory will all be yours if we succeed. I will be responsible 
for all the infamy that may arise from a possible defeat." 

The veterans of many hard-fought battles listened with favour to what 



JAPAN. 269 

she said, but it was not until after long and vexatious delays that Empress 
Jingu's army was ready to set forth on the hazardous enterprise, in 

201 A.D. 

It must be remembered that these vikings of the Far East had no certain 
knowledge of their destination, and from the various scouts who had 
been sent out nothing had been learned of land beyond the seas, so that 
only their Amazonian leader really believed that a country lay to the 
westward. Neither did these bold navigators have chart or compass to 
guide them on their course. The birds must be their pilots and the 
heavens their chart. But the gods seemed not to have forsaken the brave 
woman at their head, in male disguise, for the shore of southern Corea 
was reached without mishap. The king of this country looked upon the 
gorgeous fleet of the invaders with dismay, exclaiming, " Our gods have 
betrayed us ! They have never told us of a country beyond ours where 
such ships could come from." 

Under the impulse of fear the Coreans displayed white flags and sur- 
rendered without offering any resistance. The wealth of the country was 
laid at the feet of the conquerors, and the king swore that so long as the 
stars shone and water ran down-hill Corea should be faithful to Japan. 
Empress Jingu gave token of peace by placing beside the gates implements 
of war, and accompanied by eighty ships laden with gold, silver, silks, and 
valuable goods of many kinds, set out with her fleet on her return from 
the proudest expedition Japan had ever known. The empress soon after 
bore a posthumous son, named Ojin, who became a noted warrior, and was 
deified as the God of War. He shared with his mother the glory of this 
Corean conquest. Since that illustrious day nine empresses have ruled 
Japan, and some of them with great wisdom ; but not one has become as 
renowned as the Empress Jingu, with whose proud achievement originated 
the haughty boast of the Japanese, which lives yet, " The arms of Japan 
shine beyond the seas." Richer than the stores of nature which accrued 
from her conquest were the treasures of art, science, medicine, literature, 
philosophy, and religion that followed as the fairest heritage of this fair 
conqueror. 




THE CHERRY BANK. 



CHAPTER XXVIII. 



THE FIVE HUNDRED YEARS WAR. 



ALL this took place under the creed of Shintoism, until, in the sixth 
century, Buddhism was introduced from Corea as one of the fruits 
of Empress Jingu's victory. Soon after this an affair occurred 
which has been given a prominent place in the annals of that time. It 
was nothing less than the assassination of a ruler, Emperor Susun, which 
arose from royal intrigues and internecine quarrels. This is claimed to 
be the only crime of its kind in the long history of Japanese wars and 
struggles. It resulted in placing a woman upon the throne, the Empress 
Suiko, who was the first female ruler, the Empress Jingu having never 
been at the head of the empire. The claim was made that the new relig- 
ion had been the cause of the murderous affair, and that under the old 
religion it could never have occurred. A prince of the imperial family 
made the ingenious explanation that the deed of violence had been a 
visitation upon the deceased for some misdemeanour done by him while 
on earth under another form, so it was accepted as a fulfilment of 
Buddhist doctrine. 

Through this questionable act that branch of the royal family known 

270 



JAPAN. 271 

as the Soga came into the ascendency, but its success caused its repre 
sentatives to commit such indiscretions that during the reign of Empress 
Kokyoku (642-645 a. d.) it fell from power and never recovered its lost 
prestige. 

The succeeding monarch was Kamatari, who traced his ancestry back 
to Jimmu, with as much certainty as did many others of royal aspira- 
tions. His valiant achievements won for him the title of " Fujiwara," 
which means '' wistaria plain," chosen, no doubt, from the signification 
of the hardihood of this lusty flowering shrub. The family thus founded 
wielded the sceptre of Japan for ^yq^ hundred years, and under its regime 
the country rose in power and enlightenment. It is claimed with ample 
proof that it is the most ancient and noble family in the world. About 
ninety-five per cent, of the nobility of the Japanese court of the present 
day claim descent from Kamatari, and fifty-five families bear the name 
of Fujiwara. 

Under this line, in 702 a. d., the notable body of laws called the Taiho 
Code, from the era under which it was promulgated, was created, by which 
separate departments were organised for administering the executive, 
judicial, criminal, and civil laws. With the increase of royal aspirants 
for position, and other complications arising in the machinery of these 
departments, in 888, the functions of the offices were concentrated into 
one, under the title of kambaku, or regent, a term it will be well to bear 
in mind, as it played an important part in the succeeding history of the 
empire. The emperor consenting to this, his power was considerably 
curtailed by an edict declaring that henceforth every official act of the 
ruler must be passed upon by this regent. The power of the military 
class thus began its ascendency. It now possessed the control over life and 
death, reward and punishment, in times of peace as well as in war. Each 
province now had its military head, ostensibly to put down the bandits and 
marauding bands infesting the remote districts, Avhile adding materially to 
the armed force of the empire. 

Gradually the influence of the emperor, or mikado, as the sovereign had 
been called, became more and more nominal. The very title of his office, 
which meant the " sublime gate," lost favour and has never recovered it. 
To intrench themselves more* firmly in their position, that branch of the 
Fujiwara element which had assumed so much of the ruling power, created 



272 



THE FAR EAST. 



yet another office with the avowed purpose this time of placing the mili- 
tary forces under him. The title bestowed this time was that now well 
known, but foreign appearing, term of shogun, meaning, as has been said, 
generalissimo. Military service on the part of the large class of samurai, 
the non-civilians, or people outside of husbandmen, artisans, and traders, 
was made obligatory. Great estates now rapidly came into existence^ 
obtained generally by their holders through meritorious military service 




HAMA RIKIU GARDEN, LAKE VIEW 



or special grants to favourite ministers. The priests also came into 
possession of powerful landed interests. 

In fact, it was a period of great activity of personal ambitions on all 
hands except that of the successive rulers. These were still further 
weakened by the establishment of the rule that the male heir of the 
imperial family should marry a daughter of the family, his choice being 
restricted to five branches. The Fujiwara who was grandfather to this 
wife was to be the regent. The Fujiwara regency soon entered upon the 
grandest part of its career. 



JAPAN. 



273 



The country at the beginning of the twelfth century was enjoying an 
era of peace and prosperity. The two great clans of war had effectually 
overcome all enemies, swept the Inland Sea of its piratical hordes, and 
driven farther north than ever before the savage Ainus, or " grass rebels," 
as they were called on account of their habit of crawling upon their would- 
be victims from beneath the tall, dense grass which covered the moors in 
summer-time. Taxes rested lightly on the people, and, whatever the faults 
of the ruling powers, they practised economy and ruled with equity. 




UMBRELLA MAKERS. 



In the midst of this triumphal march across the stage of imperial 
government appeared almost simultaneously two rival clans, or federations 
of families. One of these was known as Minamoto or Genji ; the other, 
as Hei-ke-gen or Taira. Both claimed descent by the imperial line from 
ancestors born out of wedlock, a sort of cousins, as it were, to the Fujiwara. 
Their ancestors had been poor, glad to accept from generation to genera- 
tion some official position which would support them. The most sought- 
after had been the governorships of provinces. The first clan was now 
comprised of four families, while the second numbered as many as 
fourteen. From their very situations these two factions had been really 



274 THE FAR EAST. 

the holders of military power, which had grown with their ascension. 
The vast power of the military chiefs so largely in their hands, and the 
riches of great estates coming to them, the rise of these two powerful clans 
ended in a war which lasted for five hundred years, — the longest period of 
warfare recorded on the pages of the world's history. It was a civil war 
of terrible ferocity and undying hatred, as such strifes generally prove. 
It is true there were now and then cessations in hostilities, but they were 
mere breathing spells in the long and sanguinary contest which deluged 
the ancient capital in blood, swelled the rivers of the empire with crimson 
floods, and " wrung tears from the stars." 

It began as simply as many another protracted quarrel has commenced, 
with a dispute among the nobles as to who should succeed to the throne 
at Kyoto. It had been the scheme of the Fujiwara regents to allow no 
person at the head of the imperial line whom they could not control. 
For this reason youthful persons held the nominal powers, one after 
another^ until, grown to stronger, if not wiser stature, they were either 
asked to abdicate or were removed by means sometimes less frank and not 
above question. In IT 59 two aspirants for the sovereignty appeared, one 
the brother of a ruler who had died under suspicious circumstances, and 
the other a mere youth in the direct line. The rival clans espoused 
different claimants, and so fierce and high did the dispute run between 
the nobles that finally they came to battle, — a hotly contested fight, which 
historians describe with vivid words, largely on account of the peculiar 
relationship of the contestants, as the opposing families did not present 
each a solid front. The rival princes were uncle and nephew, while two 
of the Taira clan favouring different sides stood in the same connection. 
A son and a father of the Genji forces fought on opposite lines ; and thus 
it was all through the ranks. 

The Taira clan was led by the redoubtable Kyomori, and he was victori- 
ous, placing Emperor Nijo upon the throne ; and it looked as though the 
Minamoto army was crushed beyond hope of recovery. But if the order 
of imperial succession was settled by a few hours of bitter slaughter, it 
had made wounds that would never heal. A war followed that, under the 
softening influences of centuries, affords proud pictures of chivalrous deeds, 
great personal heroism, remarkable military prowess, cruel injustice, 
questionable cunning, treachery, patriotism, and other qualities, good and 



JAPAN. 



275 



evil, which accompany the hosts of war. The evil is largely forgotten in 
the memory of the list of warriors and statesmen that glorify the historic 
pages of that long and memorable era. Among the foremost stand forth 
conspicuously Kiyomori, Yoritomo, Yoshitsune, Yasutoki, Nobunaga, 
Hideyoshi, and lyeyasu. The greatest general was Yoshitsune ; the most 




SCENERY IN THE HILL GARDEN, HONJO. 



famous of them is lyeyasu ; the most remarkable, Hideyoshi, called the 
Taiko. 

There are abundant sources from which the historian of that period of 
civil wars may draw his material, the most satisfactory being those 
of the Heike Monog atari, or " Story of the Taira," and the Hog en 
Monogatari, or " Story of the Genji." The Taira continued to practise the 
scheme of keeping an incompetent person on the throne, or at least one 
whom they could control. Thus the Emperor Shirakawa, ascending the 
throne at twenty-one, was thought to be growing too strong to rule longer 
at thirty-five, and was asked to abdicate in favour of his son, Horikawa, 
only nine ; the latter was forced to yield in early life to Toba, who ac- 



276 



THE FAR EAST. 



cepted nominal rule at six ; when sixteen he was succeeded by Shyutoki, 
aged four, who got out of the way at twenty-four for Konoye, only four ; 
he in turn, finding in his seventeenth year that he could not live, selected 
as his successor an elder brother, named Go-Shirakawa, who was both old 
and wise enough to threaten to become a thorn in the side of the Fujiwara. 
The Taira in espousing his cause accepted a dangerous trust, but were 
careful to send him to a monastery inside of three years, when he was 
followed by another succession of infant emperors : Nijo, eighteen at his 




SCREEN PAINTING. 



accession, twenty-fovir at his death ; Rokujo, ascending the throne in form 
at twelve months, and deposed at four years; followed by Takakura, a boy 
of seven, who abdicated upon the day he became a man ; Antoku, a child 
of three, who was to end this sort of misrule upon the defeat of the Taira 
usurpation. 

The Minamoto or Genji clan, at tlie time of its defeat at the hands of 
the Taira under Kiyomori, was led by Yoshitomo, who was put to death by 
his conqueror. Among the followers of this unfortunate noble was his 
son, a boy of twelve, and one of the bravest of his adherents. His name 
was Yoritomo, and in the battle he became separated from his father and 



JAPAN. 277 

brothers, to wander alone through the city after the downfall of his clan. 
Meeting a friendly fisherman, the latter disguised him as a girl, and he 
succeeded in reaching the house of another friend, where he was urged to 
remain. But learning here of his father's unhappy fate, in spite of the 
entreaties of his companions Yoritomo resolved to try and escape into 
the eastern province, where he hoped to be able to raise an army strong 
enough to avenge the death of his parent. Accordingly, leaving his sword 
with these people, it being likely to hinder him in his flight, the undaunted 
boy set forth on his perilous journey. 

Before he had left the city he was seen by a follower of the Taira, and 
being recognised was taken as a prisoner. Exulting over the capture of 
one who had shown such courage on the battle-field, his enemies condemned 
him to die. But the noble who had effected his arrest seemed to have 
repented of the act, and thinking of his own boy about the age of the 
captive, he asked him if he wished to live. Yoritomo replied, cautiously, 
" If I live there will be some one who can pray for the souls of my father 
and brother; if I die there will be none." This led the lord to think that 
he intended to enter a monastery, and he decided to try and save him. 
This was accomplished through a stepmother of Kiyomori, who was made 
to think that he resembled a son she had lost in his early youth. No 
sooner had it become known that Kiyomori had suffered Yoritomo to go 
free, than it was whispered abroad that he might as well have turned loose 
a tiger. As over twenty years slipped by without any foreboding of re- 
taliation on the part of the son of Yoshitomo, the people ceased to think 
of him as an enemy to the Taira. But the dying words of the conqueror 
would show that he had not forgotten him, if his subjects had : 

" Now that I must leave this life and power which I have wielded long 
and widely, I have one regret which makes dying bitter. It is the thought 
that I must die without seeing the head of Yoritomo, of the Minamoto. 
Say no prayers for me when I am dead until you have hung before my 
tomb the head of Yoritomo." 

Meanwhile, Yoritomo had become a man of thirty-five, quiet, retiring in 
his disposition, strong and hardy of physique. He had not shaved his 
head and become a monk as had been expected, but he had lived with one 
of the chiefs of the province of Idzu. As the years had rolled past, one 
after another of his father's retainers had died or gone over to the assist- 



278 



THE FAR EAST. 



ance of the rival powers, so it seemed that whatever ambition he may once 
have had of recovering his heritage was slipping aw^ay. But a woman 
and a dream were destined greatly to influence his future. 

Believing that it was time for him to get married, Yoritomo decided to 
try and get one of the daughters of his master. An unfortunate love- 
affair earlier in life had given him reason to move with extreme caution in 
this. This escapade had caused this lord with wdiom he was making his 




ARTIFICIAL CASCADE IX A LANDSCAPE GARDEN. 



home to keep his daughters — he had tw^o — secluded from him, which 
made his undertaking more difficult. He had heard that the older was 
very beautiful, wdiile the younger, who was only her half-sister, was quite 
plain. But this did not deter him from trying to wdn her, and he hoped 
to do this largely through the influence of her mother. So he despatched 
a love-note to her by his servant, who proved to be more ambitious than 
faithful. Surprised that his master should seek to wdn one so plain, he 
changed the address to that of her sister, Masako, who w^as noted for her 
beauty and wisdom. 



JAPAN. 



279 



In the meantime, another element than deception had entered into the 
combination of circumstances, for the previous night the younger sister 
had dreamed of a pigeon flying toward her with a golden basket on her 
beak. Upon being told this dream, her older sister offered to buy it. The 
other was willing, 
saying she would ac- 
cept in exchange a 
mirror the latter 
owned. "The dream," 
she thought, "is no 
doubt a delusion, but 
the mirror is beautiful 
and real. I have 
longed for it, so take 
my dream with all it 
may bring thee." 
How much this had 
to do with the forgery 
of the love-message 
cannot be told, but 
Masako was made 
happy by it, and, hav- 
ing no mother in 
whom to confide, she 
kept her secret from 
all but Yoritomo for 
some time. 

While the loi^?rs 
were plighting their 
troth, Masako's father was in Kyoto, and upon his return he announced 
that he had promised her hand to the Governor of Idzu. If this com- 
plication seemed to offer serious interference with the plans of Yoritomo 
and Masako, she soon suggested a scheme by which the word of her father 
might not be broken, while she could keep her faith with her lover. She 
consented to marry the'*governor, but within an hour she was flying from 
the scene with Yoritomo, whom she Aved that night. This course satis- 




VILLAGE STREET. 



280 



THE FAR EAST. 



fied her father^ and later he became a stanch supporter of his son-in- 
law. 

Masako proved both wise and ambitious, and no sooner was she the wife 
of Yoritomo than she began to urge him to attempt to regain his rightful 
possession, and with her father did much toward helping him raise an 
army of followers. Prince Moshihito, the second son of Go-Shirakawa, 
who was still living in banishment, took up the cause of the Genji or 
Minamoto clan, sending a message to Yoritomo to lead an expedition 




VIEW ON SUMIDA RIVER. 



against the Taira force. But so few answered the united appeals of the 
bold rebels, that in a short battle Yoritomo was defeated and obliged to 
seek shelter in the fastness of the Hakone Mountains. Pursued by his 
enemies, he was driven to seek concealment in a hollow tree, wh^.n his life 
was saved by a bird. Just as the Taira forces reached the place, a wood- 
pigeon flew out of the opening into which Yoritomo had crawled a moment 
before. Judging that no human being would be in the hollow just 
deserted by the bird, the searchers passed on in a fruitless endeavour to 
find their enemy. 

Undaunted by his misfortunes at the outset, Yoritomo went on calmly 



JAPAN. 281 

collecting recruits until he had a respectable army, when he intrenched 
himself at Kamakura. At this time a half-brother, Yoshitsune, nicknamed 
'' the young ox " on account of his great strength, rallied to the assistance 
of Yoritomo, and while the latter fortified himself at the future capital of 
the Genji clan, he marched boldly against the imperial army. This he 
met on a marsh a little south of Kyoto, and speedily put to rout the hosts 
of Taira. Following up his success here, he kept on toward Kobe, leading 
his forces against the enemy so furiously at Fukuwara that he was again 
victorious. The commander of the Taira now sought safety by flight, 
hoping to reach Kyushu by sea. Again Yoshitsune showed his promptness 
and swiftness of action, and collecting a fleet of ships gave pursuit. He 
overtook the Tairan army in the Straits of Shimonoseki, where one of the 
most noted naval battles in the history of Japan occurred. Victory seemed 
to be permanently perched on the banner of the indomitable Yoshitsune, who 
annihilated the fleet of the Taira, the few survivors of the once powej^fui 
clan seeking safety in the mountains of Kyushu. A significant incident 
of this overthrow of the Taira power at Dan-no-ura was the voluntary 
seeking of death in the sea by drowning of the widow of Kiyamori, who, 
with the last of the boy emperors, Antoku, her grandchild, in her arms, 
sprang overboard rather than to fall into the hands of their vanquistiers. 
To this day the descendants of that ill-fated clan listen with melancnoiy 
interest to the Homers of that far land singing with peculiar pathos tne 
rhythmic prose of " Heike Monogatari," the last of the Tairas. 



CHAPTER XXIX. 

THE CONQUEROR OF A CONTINENT. 

NATURALLY this warlike era, whose chief merit was tlie making of 
soldiers, abounds with tales of personal heroism and individual 
sacrifice of life. Nor are these confined by any means to leaders 
with their all at stake, but are distributed with a liberal hand among the 
rank and file. One of the first class that has outlived the stormy 
period is the story of the Genjian noble, the Regains of Japan. Yoshitsune 
bad concentrated his army before Fukuwara, and was waiting for the 
favourable opportunity when he should hazard an attack. During this 
brief delay a noble from among his force was sent into the enemy's camp 
to ascertain their real strength and their most vulnerable point. 

The noble who had been chosen for this difficult and dangerous under- 
taking immediately prepared to carry out the order of his commander. 
But^ while he acted with extreme caution, his disguise was penetrated by 
one of the sharp-eyed Tairans who had met him, and he was captured and 
neld as a spy. This occurred at the very time when the besieged army 
was trying to make a defence until succour could be sent to its assistance. 
Rikiya, the captured spy, saw and understood the critical situation of the 
city, and longed for the opportunity to communicate the news to Yoshi- 
tsune. 

Exulting over their capture, the Tairan forces thought to profit by 
it to their utmost, and with this purpose in mind, offered the spy his life 
if he would divulge the actual strength of Yoshitsune's army and his 
intentions. The Spartan hero showed no truer spirit of fidelity to his 
countrymen than this Regulus of Japan, who haughtily refused to say a 
word. The most cruel of tortures were then applied to him, in the hope 
that he might weaken. But no pain they could inflict upon him caused 
him to flinch. In the midst of his sufferings he decided upon a plan 
which he believed would enable him to accomplish the desire of his heart. 
So he feigned to yield, and acknowledged to his tormentors that if they 

282 



JAPAN. 



283 



would take him to the bank of the moat, where he might gaze for a last 
time upon his friends and relatives, he would give them information which 
would be the great surprise of their lives. 

Eager to improve any advantage, the Tairan commander agreed to the 
terms, and Rikiya was taken at once to the desired spot. Once there, he 
beheld not only friends and companions-in-arms, but his dearly beloved 
wife and children. Equal to even this ordeal, he shouted to them the 




MOOR AND LAKP: VIEW, FTKIACiE UAKDEN. 



exact situation in the camp of the enemy, their weakness and fears, and 
then turned with calm resignation to meet the vengeance of his maddened 
captors. He met his fate with a smile on his lips, satisfied in the con- 
sciousness of having done his leader the highest favour in his power. 
Yoshitsune immediately attacked the city, and though he won a proud 
victory he was too late to save the hero of the day. And this is but a 
specimen of the many tales of heroism in the times when man's most 
exalted trade was war. 

With Yoshitsune's victory at Dan-no-ura over the Taira, in 1185, the 



284 



THE FAR EAST. 



supremacy of Yoritomo was assured, but now follows the cloud that has 
ever darkened the brightness of his fame as a ruler and a general of 
armies. He had established himself at Kamakura as his capital, and upon 
receiving the news of his brother's victories, which had been greater than 
he had dared to hope, acting no doubt upon the advice of unwise counsel- 
lors, he prepared to avoid meeting him, instead of welcoming him with the 
honour so valiant a warrior deserved. Upon reaching the great gate at 




SAMBUTSUDO, XIKKO. 



the temple in the village of Koshigoye, Yoshitsune was told to halt, and 
there deliver over the trophies he had won to a person who had been 
delegated to bear them to Yoritomo. Finding now that his fair name 
had been tarnished with an evil report of personal ambitions which had 
never existed, he wrote his brother beD;aing: him not to be blinded with 
prejudice against him. This letter, full of tender and brotherly love, is 
still in existence, and is taught as a model among the schools of Japan. 
After waiting several days in vain for a reply, the conqueror went tc 
Kyoto, bereft of his command and his every step dogged by spies. From 



JAPAN. 285 

the imperial city lie went to liis old haunts at Mutsu, and from that time 
we have three conflicting accounts of the fate of this heroic man. One of 
these is that he was followed into his seclusion by the spies of his brother, 
and finding himself unable to escape the toils of his jealous oppressor, 
after first killing his wife and children, he committed hara-kiri, and his 
head, preserved in sake, was borne in triumph to Kamakura. 

Another and more pleasant version declares that Yoshitsune escaped 
his enemies, and reached the island of Hokkaido, where he lived many 
years among the Ainus, loved and respected by them. When he died, a 
shrine was raised above his grave at Hitaka, and to this day his spirit is 
worshipped as a god by this people. Tradition, which has ever a fairer 
conception of justice than history, declares that Yoshitsune not only 
reached the island in safety, but that he crossed over to the mainland of 
Asia. There he proved his old-time valour by making himself famous the 
continent over as the renowned Mongol conqueror, Genghis Khan, even- 
tually reaping a harvest of vengeance through his grandson, who invaded 
his homeland years later at the head of the powerful Tartar band which 
gave Japan so much trouble, as we shall soon describe. The evidence is 
very much in favour of this sequel, which is supported by the Chinese, 
who say that Genghis Khan was one Yoshitsune, who came from Dai 
Nippon. 

Be that as it may, while Yoritomo has been declared the Napoleon of 
the Far East, the fame and good name of the man who really won his 
battles for him outshines his. The latter is preeminently the hero of 
youth. His picture is to be seen on the boys' kites ; his effigy is one of the 
leading features at the annual festivals of the boys of the land ; art, song, 
and story have combined to make his name immortal ; while the aboriginal 
race of Japan join in worshipping him as a god. 

If we passed over somewhat hastily the dazzling achievements of this 
ideal warrior of Japan, whose sturdy, figure at this distant day towers 
above all others in that era of great soldiers, the career of Yoshitsune 
deserves more elaborate description. He was born in 1159, and, accepting 
the accredited claim that he was the conqueror of Asia and the founder 
of the line of Manclm rulers of China, he died in 1227, his entire life 
reading more like romance than a cliapter of history. Yoshitomo had, be- 
sides Yoritomo, five legitimate sons, all of whom met tragic fates, while 



286 



THE FAR EAST. 



Yosliitsune was the youngest of three sons born out of wedlock, whose 
mother, Tokiwa, was one of the fairest women of Japan. Her name is 
remembered now as a synonym for womanly devotion unto love and duty. 
She was holding this babe in her arms when the news reached her of the 
death of his father, and of the danger menacing her life and the lives of 
her children. Taking these with her, she fled at night-time through a 
blinding snow-storm to her girlhood home, Tokiwa Castle. There she was 
astounded to find that the castle was in the hands of the enemy, and her 
mother at that hour under sentence of death. Dazed by this terrible 




YEGKTABLE SHOP. 



situation, she saved her mother by allowing her children to become her 
ransom. A short time after, she purchased their freedom with the offer- 
ing of her beautiful person to the wishes of Kiyomori. Her memory is 
enshrined in the pathetic story of ,that stormy night's flight. 

Yoshitsune was taken to a monastery at Kurama, where he stayed until 
he had tired of the litanies and sutras, when he ran away to become a 
follower of the sword. He had become a remarkable swordsman already, 
and at twenty-one offered his services to his half-brother, Yoritomo, whom 
he had never met. His youthfulness and inexperience made his campaign 
in the West, which resulted in the complete rout of the Tairan army, all 



JAPAN. 



287 



the more wonderful. It is justly considered the most brilliant series of 
victories ever won in Japan, and it is doubtful if the skill with which he 
met the enemy, and the rapidity with which he acted, especially in collect- 
ing vessels and pursuing the Tairan forces, finds its match in the history 
of the world at that day. With the praise of this prodigious feat ringing 
in their ears, it is little wonder his companions were awed by the presence 
of the conquering hero, or that Yoritomo suddenly grew to fear him. 
Around his short, stoutly built figure cling many hero-tales of personal 




A BASKET SELLER. 



prowess, and the gundan, or war-tales, of that period give vivid records 
of his tragic fate, and the heroic defence made in his behalf by a handful 
of chosen followers ; how his giant glaivesman, Benkei, next to him the 
best swordsman in the land, broke the handle of his glaive short, so he 
could best use it in close quarters, and fought irresistibly until he was 
entangled in ball-chains thrown about him by his enemies. Just beyond 
him lay the dead forms of Yoshitsune, his wife, and child. 

This may have been so, and the head sent to Yoritomo have been that 
of the dead conqueror, but the evidence goes to show that Yoshitsune was 
already in Tartary, or on his way hither. He was then between thirty- 



288 THE FAR EAST. 

one and forty years of age, and at the exact time when Genghis Khan 
became noted on the banks of Amur River. Tenjin is supposed to have 
been the name he took. Of course there is little but tradition at this late 
day to fix the identity of the two great generals as one, but all of these 
favour the idea.^ As a matter of history, the Genji clan of Japan always 
fought under a white banner, which was the ensign of the Mongol army. 
The mother of Genghis was said to have been found by her lover in the 
snow, a story bearing a close resemblance to the account of Tokiwa's 
flight through the snow-storm and darkness with Yoshitsune in her arms. 
There are many other lines of evidence which lend currency to the belief 
that the conqueror of the Taira clan became yet more famous as the con- 
queror of nearly all of Asia. But they need not be repeated here. With- 
out or with them, the fame of Yoshitsune is safe in Japan. 

lAn annalist who has studied into this matter says : " It is difficult to conceive any pseudonym 
which Yoshitsune would have been more likely to choose than 'Tenjin.' Another suggestion is thai 
he called himself Tengu-jin in allusion to the popular fancy that his remarkable skill in fence had 
been derived from the teaching of the King of the Tengu. Then the clan at the head of which 'Temu- 
jin ' made his first conquest was the ' Nirongouu,' and the meaning of the word is said to have been 
'children of the sun.' The little band of men that followed Yoshitsune from Oshiu and received an 
accession of strength in Yezo before crossing to the continent, were 'Nihon-jin' (Japanese), or men 
from the land of the rising sun. When 'Temujin' began to acquire dominant military power, he 
called himself ' Genghis-khan ; ' or, to speak more correctly, he assumed a name which tradition calls 
' Genghis-khan.' Yoshitsune was a scion of the Minamoto. His family was ' Gen,' and the name of 
his clan, ' Genji,' or ' Genke.' ' Gen ' is, in fact, the alternative pronunciation of ' Minamoto.' More- 
over, ' Minamoto Yoshitsune ' has for its alternative sound 'GenGekei.' Further, the 'Minamoto' 
signifies ' water-source ; ' the word ' Kian ' or ' Khan ' is traditionally alleged to have meant ' running 
water.' A Chinese historian says that Genghis Khan was ' Tuan Yi-king,' and writes the name with 
ideographs, which, according to the ordinary Japanese rendering, would be read, ' Minamoto Yoshi- 
tsune.' The wife of Genghis-khan had the title of 'Fudjin.' 'Fujin' is the term applied to a 
married lady in Japan. Two of the principal generals of Genghis, sent by him to invade Persia and 
southern Europe, were called, according to tradition, ' Subtai,' and ' Shuppi ; ' the two principal fol- 
lowers of Yoshitsune were Saito Benkei and Wash-no-o Saburo. Between ' Saito ' and ' Subtai,' the 
resemblance is sufficiently evident, and 'Shuppi' is the alternative sound of 'Wash-no-o.' Genghis 
is said to have given the name ' Manchu ' to the district over which he first acquired sway on the 
continent. 'Manchu' is the alternate pronunciation of ' Mitsunaka,' or Yoshitsune's princely 
ancestor. These are certainly remarkable coincidences, difficult to ascribe to mere accident. If they 
have any value as establishing the identity of Genghis and Yoshitsune, they also go to prove that 
the present Manchu rulers of China are of Japanese origin. A passage transcribed by a Japanese 
author from a Chinese encyclopedia at the end of the eighteenth century attributes to the great Chinese 
Emperor Chinlung (1736-1795), a statement which, read according to the Japanese sounds of the 
ideographs employed, is this : ' My family name is Gen. I am a descendant of Yoshitsune, whose 
ancestor was Siewa. Hence we call our dynasty Set, and our family Gen.'' " 




GARDEN HILLS WITH ROUNDED BUSHES. 



CHAPTER XXX. 



PIPING TIMES OF THE REGENTS. 



THE new capital Yoritomo set up at the little fishing-hamlet of Kam- 
akura, to rival the imperial city, grew and spread so rapidly that it 
soon numbered a million inhabitants, and became the centre of 
a power which was known and felt in every part of the island. It was 
Yoritomo' s aim to establish a family line which should rival the Fujiwara, 
and for that end he strengthened his position in every way possible. The 
royal rule at Kyoto became again shorn of its strength, and when he 
placed himself at the head of the shogunate, in 1192, he was supreme 
dictator of power both civil and military. He had his four departments 
of government ; nobles ruling over provinces acknowledged fealty to him, 
while local officials were his vassals, and every landholder in the empire 
was called upon to contribute a bushel of grain for every acre in seed. 
His rule came to a sudden end, after fifteen years of reign, by a fall from 
a horse. To-day his grave is pointed out under a grove of pine over- 

289 



290 



THE FAR EAST. 



looking a scene of desolation, where only the ashes of his capital and the 
dust of the sand-plain remain to speak of his greatness. Even the pines 
have taken on the decay of time, and are falling branch by branch before 
v^inds that sweep the sand-dunes with no mercy for memory of the past. 
It required a strong hand to take up the reins laid down by this man of 
iron will and boundless ambition. His wife, whom he married under such 
romantic circumstances, was no ordinary woman, and while she had aided 
him materially in his advance in seizing the sceptre of power, and had 




THE NUNOBIKI FALL. 



given him two sons to afford the solace for his dreams of perpetual 
sovereignty, in the end his marriage brought about the ruin of his hopes. 
These sons, neither of whom gave the promise of his father's wisdom or 
strength, succeeded in turn to the rule at Kamakura, and in turn were 
deprived of their power by an assassin. We now see illustrated a peculiar 
trait of Japanese character. The mother was willing to sacrifice the 
prospects of her children for that of her father, who was still living. No 
Japanese father would have done this, for, whatever reverse or change of 
fortune might occur, the father remained faithful to his child. Not so 
always the mother. Masako had no scruples in allowing the sacrifice of 



JAPAN. 291 

her son, and seemed indifferent to his fate, while her father, Hojo To- 
kimasa, became the head of the affairs of state. Then was repeated here, 
in another line of power, what had been done at Kyoto by the Fujiwara 
regents. Having driven the eldest son of Yoritomo, who had succeeded 
his father as shogun, to a course of living which had made of him a 
physical wreck, he was asked to abdicate and appoint his infant son as 
shogun. In this way was begun the " shadow shogunate," while this 
astute founder of the Hojo family caused to be created a power over 
this, the shikken, or " holders of power," in other words, " the regents 
of the shogun s." 

The offices of the government were rapidly filled with members of his 
own line, or partisans friendly to him, without regard to the representa- 
tives of the Minamoto clan. Yoriiye, the oldest son of Yoritomo, was 
finally compelled to seek a monastery, where he was murdered. His son, 
believing his uncle, the younger brother of the first, to be the murderer, 
improved his opportunity to kill the latter, and was in turn beheaded by 
a soldier. In this tragical manner the Genji family became extinct. 
The Hojo clan had now fairly established itself in the other's place. 

Her husband's line extinct, Masako desired to have as shogun a Fuji- 
wara representative named Yoritsune, then but two years old. This was 
gladly agreed to ; but when he was twenty-five he was forced to resign in 
favour of his own son, a boy of six. This boy-shogun was sent back to 
Kyoto at the age of fourteen, to be succeeded by a young son of the 
Emperor Go-Saga, who was in turn followed by his son when but three. 
It is monotonous to repeat these examples. All through the Hojo dom- 
ination of nearly a century and a half, there was an imperial figurehead at 
Kyoto, the shadow of a shogun at Kamakura, while the Hojo held the 
real power and controlled both. 

Of course wars and bitter opposition ensued. Grown bold in their 
usurpation, the Hojo clan dared to insult and attack the imperial house at 
Kyoto. At last the nominal ruler at Kyoto sought to recover what was 
rightfully his, but his plans being discovered by the Hojo, he was seized 
and sent into banishment at Oki. On the way occurred an incident that 
has been celebrated in art and drama, and shows that the straws were 
already floating with the stream of coming power for the mikadoate at 
Kyoto. 



292 



THE FAR EAST. 



Among those who were faithful followers of the unfortunate emperor 
was a young nobleman named Kojima Takanori, who set out with a 
number of retainers to rescue the imperial exile. Missing the party in 
charge of the royal captive, the followers of Kojima left him in disappoint- 
ment, when he followed on alone. It was now his wish to inform the 




CURIOUS ROCK FORMATION AT HARUNA. 



emperor that he had a friend who would not rest until he had been saved. 
But so closely was the prisoner guarded that he found no opportunity to 
deliver his message. In this dilemma he resorted to a scheme of great 
ingenuity as well as poetical beauty. Entering the garden of a tea-house 
where the party was stopping over night, he wrote in ink on the inner 
bark of a cherry-tree the following couplet : 



JAPAN. 293 

" Ten Kosen wo horobosu nakare 
Toki ni Hanrei naki ni shimo aradzu." 

This couplet referred to the fate of an early king of China by the name 
of Kosen, who was wrested of his power, and sent, an exile, into a far-away 
country, but who was followed and rescued by a faithful friend named 
Hanrei, and it applied most aptly to the situation here. In English it 
would run something like this : 

" High Heaven, bid Kosen hope 
So long as Hanrei lives." 

When the attention of the soldiers was directed to this singular message 
on the cherry-tree, which all saw had been newly made, but which none 
of them could read, they finally took the emperor to see it. He quickly 
deciphered it, and, with renewed hope in his heart, deceived his captors by 
declaring it some nonsense without meaning or purpose. It seems like an 
irony of fate that such a hero should fail in his loyal undertaking, but 
Kojima fell soon after on the battle-field. If he failed, there was another 
even then training for the work which was to reinstate the imperial line, 
trample in the dust the doubtful laurels of Hojo, and lay proud 
Kamakura in ashes. 

This warrior who flits so clearly across the historic page was most fit- 
tingly a descendant of the Minamoto, though at the time of his appear- 
ance from obscurity into renown he was a captain in the army of Hojo, 
and his name was Nitta Yoshisada. He was among those who had been 
sent to seize the emperor, but, unwilling to do this, he deserted his com- 
mand, and fled to his native town. From there he sent to the son of the 
exiled emperor word of his intention to try and raise an army to defeat 
the Hojo clan. He was given a commission in the name of the banished 
ruler, and a few days later, at the head of a strong force, he raised the 
revolt against the tyrannical Hojo. He had a banner made especially for 
him, which was a long white pennant, cut in twain by a black zone and 
crossed at the top by double black bars. 

Nitta then boldly marched against the capital of his enemies. At 
nightfall he encamped by the seashore, not far distant from his objective 
point, and, surrounded by one of the fairest scenes in all Dai Nippon, made 
up of silvery seas, green islands, and flowering landscapes, and overlooked 



294 



THE FAR EAST. 



by the snow-crowned Fujiyama, he immortalised himself by an act that 
poets and artists have never tired of reproducing. Assembling his army 
on the beach, he addressed his warriors in an eloquent appeal to battle on 
the morrow for their country and their emperor, closing with these words : 
" Our heavenly one (the emperor) has fared ill at the hands of traitors, 

and has been suffered- 
to be sent into banish- 
ment in the Western 
Sea. I, Yoshisada, 
cannot look upon this 
shameful deed in 
peace, and have called 
an army together that 
the robbers yonder 
might be punished. 
Ruler of the Sea, I 
beseech thee to look 
into my heart, and if 
thou findest it loyal, 
command the tide to 
turn back so that we 
may pass by an open 
path." 

Bowing reverently, 
he then tossed his 
sword far out into the 
water as an offering 
to the gods, that his 
wish might be ful- 
filled. A hushed 
silence fell upon the scene as the gold hilt of the noble weapon described 
a semicircle in the air, and then the keen blade cut its way to the bottom 
of the sea. The army was astir with the break of the new day, and found 
that the tide had ebbed so far that a wide, clear path lay between them and 
the city. Believing their leader to be chosen of High Heaven, Nitta's 
hosts followed him to a glorious victory that day, when the arms of Hojo 




LAKH SCEXK. 



JAPAN. 



295 



went down to rise no more, and Kaniakura was wrapped in a winding 
sheet of flames. 

Nitta's success at Kamakura was swiftly followed by the drawing of the 
sword against Ho jo, east and west, and so earnestly was the contest 
carried on that the once powerful family was completely routed, and 
imperial rule in the West reestablished. The vengeance of the long- 
suffering was something fearful to behold, and it is believed that not fewer 




STONE FIGURES AT NIKKO. 



than seven thousand nobles perished in battle or by suicide, which was 
considered the true code of honour for the defeated soldier. Thus, after 
one hundred and thirty-seven years of rule, the Hojo made way for 
another line of armed power. Whatever may be said against them, 
and much has been, it cannot be denied that they gave Japan the longest 
term of peace it had known up to that time ; they developed the natural 
resources of the country as these had never been advanced ; and they 
encouraged art and cultivated literature, the mixed tongue of to-day being 



296 THE FAR EAST. 

one of the results. To this era belonged the " old masters " of the arts 
of lacquer-painting, image-carving, and sculpture. It was during this 
reign, too, that many of the grand temples, pagodas, colossal images, 
and monasteries were built. The Bronze Buddha at Kamakura, which 
alone remains, a reminder of the glory of that day, was really built under 
the Hojo rule, though conceived by Yoritomo and the money raised by an 
admirer of his. A monument of note was reared by one of the Hojo, 
above the grave of Kiyomori, who, it will be remembered, was the founder 
of the Tairan rule. To the sagacity and invincible patriotism of the Hojo 
family was due the defeat of that great Mongol invasion, which will be 
the subject of our next chapter. 

Before passing on to that, however, it can do no harm to mention the 
ill fate which seemed to follow Kyoto, the imperial city, during the era of 
boy emperors and shadow shoguns. Deluged often in blood by the many 
sanguinary battles between the rival factions, it suffered from other causes 
that were beyond the power of man. In 1177 many thousands of homes 
and a portion of the imperial palace were destroyed by fire. Three years 
later a most disastrous hurricane visited the unfortunate city, when the 
court of Kiyomori was removed to the fortified city of Fukuwara. This 
was in 1180, and a year later famine and pestilence reigned over the panic- 
stricken inhabitants, following, very singularly, close upon the death of the 
usurper. Again, the overthrow of the Taira at Don-no-ura, in 1185, was 
succeeded by a tremendous earthquake. Small wonder that the super- 
stitious looked on one evil as a sequence of the other. 



CHAPTER XXXI. 

THE MONGOL INVASION. 

WHEN Kamakura was at the zenith of her glory, and the Hojo 
reigned supreme at the military capital by the sea, commerce 
assumed its highest success until that date. Trade was carried 
on far and wide by merchants, who sent their goods throughout the 
provinces on horseback. The most serious drawbacks to these business 
ventures were the frequent attacks from numerous mountain bandits that 
infested the country. These showed remarkable boldness in their depre- 
dations, often going so far as to rob the people in their homes, and every 
traveller laid himself liable to onset from them. Many of the outlaws 
were meml^ers of families that belonged to the nobility, were expert in 
the use of weapons, and cunning in their schemes of plunder. Finally 
they grew so bold and artful as to assume the role of officials, and to 
exact "tribute" from the farmers and tradesmen, none of whom dared to 
protest. Many a " toll-gatherer " of this kind outdid in audacity and skil- 
ful robbery the reckless lawlessness of the Claude Duvals and Dick 
Turpins of a later day in England, and the tales of those times fairly 
bristle with the romantic daring of these border bandits of Japan. 

During the reign of the Fujiwara lords the Genji clan had driven these 
banditti back into the mountains, while the Tairan forces had cleared the 
Inland Sea of the pirates that swarmed in those waters. The ascendency 
of the Hojo family had caused the breaking up of the clans constituting 
the natural defence of the frontiers, with the consequence just described. 
On the sea it was even worse, though this was due largely to a different 
cause. 

The gain to be obtained from intercourse with foreign nations was first 
understood by the Taira chieftain, Kiyomori, in 1170, and he attempted 
to establish commercial relations with Cliina. Some five hundred years 
before, Japan had originated the custom of sending embassies to that 
empire, but finding that this courtesy was received by the rulers as an 

297 



298 



THE FAR EAST. 



indication of vassalage, it was discontinued after two hundred years, or 
three hundred years before the rise of the Tairan dynasty. Then Ki- 
yoinori sought to build up a trade between the two countries. In order 
to enable the successful entering of foreign goods into Japan, he instituted 
extensive improvements in the harbour of Hyogo, now Kobe. But his 

wars so engrossed his 
attention that he was 
obliged to abandon 
the purpose, and no 
one following him 
finding the opportu- 
nity or having the 
inclination, the enter- 
prise did not assume 
great proportions. 
In 1254 the traffic 
was limited by the 
Hojo regent to five 
junks, and these were 
protected by Hcense, 
and all vessels not 
having a government 
permit were put under 
ban and burned when- 
ever captured. At 
this time, as for a 
long period previ- 
ously, the officials of 
Kyushu and the 
nobles of Satsuma, 
who were in closer proximity to the empire of the West, sent numerous 
ships to and fro in the interest of trade. Another class, while scarcely 
more outlaws than these, inaugurated a reign of piracy which made the 
name of Japanese sailors a terror on the high seas. 

It is the proud boast of Japan that tlie foot of a foreign invader has 
never been set upon her shore. It is true she has not often been called 




MOVING. 



JAPAN. 



299 



upon to defend herself from enemies outside of her own domains, but 
there is glory enough for the boast in the repulse of the Mongol armada, 
under the reign of the Hojo family. That victory alone is considered 
sufficient atonement for all the crimes and mistakes of that body of the 
Taira. 

The Mongol invasion, as it is known in history, was led by a grandson 
of tlie renowned Genghis Khan, named Kublai Khan, who was considered 




THE SILVER PAVILION, KYOTO. 



worthy to wear the mantle of the great conqueror. The utterance of the 
name of that mighty horde at this time was enough to strike terror to the 
heart of the listener, as well it might. Not content with the subjugation 
of China and Corea, and the overthrow of the caliphate of Bagdad, Gen- 
ghis had expanded the empire of the Mongols as far west as the Oder and 
the Danube. Dying in 1227, in his 68th year, he had left, as a part of his 
legacy to his descendants, the prophecy of an inspired seer that his family 
was to secure the conquest of the world. During the career of his son 
this remarkable enterprise was not undertaken further than to prepare 



300 • THE FAR EAST. 

for conquest by increasing the number of his followers. Kublai, his son, 
believed himself able and ready to finish the work begun by his grand- 
father. 

The great Mongol leader's first move was to send to Japan for tribute 
and acknowledgment of vassalage. The Hojo regime, then at the height 
of its power, under the rule of Hojo Tokimune, would not listen to this 
insolent demand, and though six embassies were sent in succession, each 
was dismissed witliout ceremony. Through this slow method of getting 
down to business, an interval of six years elapsed. Believing at last a 
war was imminent, the Japanese began to raise armies and to build war- 
boats and junks with which to meet the enemy at sea. A large body of 
warriors was sent from Kamakura to join in the defence of Kyoto. 

During the same period the Mongol force was preparing for the in- 
tended invasion. Tartars, Chinese, and Coreans united in the expedition, 
but the larger number of the ships Avere built in Corea. On the 12th of 
November, 1274, about forty thousand men, in four hundred vessels, started 
on the first invasion. This body did not get farther than Imazii, on the 
north shore of Kyushu, where they suffered the first repulse, and the 
leader falling in battle, the shattered force returned to China. 

Instead of following up this first attack with another, at once, Kublai 
sent nine envoys to demand tribute, and these declared their purpose of 
remaining in Japan until they should receive a favourable answer. A 
request was made that they come to Kamakura immediately. Deceiving 
themselves with the idea that their threat had served a good purpose, they 
obeyed. In the village of Tatsu no kuchi (" Mouth of the Dragon ") they 
paid for their temerity by the loss of their heads. Still Kublai, with a 
forbearance that seems remarkable, sent another embassy. These envoys 
were meted out the same reward as their predecessors, with the added 
consideration that they were saved a part of their journey by having 
their heads cut off in Kyushu. 

Nothing deterred from his purpose by his reverses so far, the Mongol 
commander now fitted out the great armada of the Far East, in order to 
conquer and humiliate Dai Nippon. His entire fighting force now num- 
bered considerably over one hundred thousand men, transported on three 
thousand five hundred ships, whose sails " whitened the seas as the snowy 
herons whiten the islands of Lake Biwa." Many of these craft were 



JAPAN. 



301 



really boats with huge decks and high prows, and bungling capstan raised 
at the stern. Although sails were used, the main dependence in getting 
over the sea was placed on oars plied through three-cornered holes cut in 
the vessels' sides. Thanks to the advice of the Venetian adventurers, 
Marco Polo and his uncle, at that time visitors with the Mongol chief,^ 
many of the junks of this great fleet were armed with European engines 
of war, while a large number of them were of proportions which Japanese 
craft had never attained. Of the artillery carried by the Mongols we have 




HONMOKU. 



no clearer account than the annals of the Japanese, which go on to say 
that the Chinese poured forth upon them great numbers of iron balls, the 
discharge accompanied by loud reports. These volleys were very destruc- 
tive to life, greatly damaged their parapets, and set fire to the watch- 
towers. Other weapons were spears, heavy bows, and straight swords. 
The soldiers were encased in thickly padded coats with skirts reaching 
below the knees, while their heads and shoulders were protected by iron 
helmets, from which hung padded edging a foot or more in depth. The 

iThis couple speut seveuteeu years — 1275 to 1292 — at the court of Kublai Khan. 



302 



THE FAR EAST. 



helmets of the officers were in many cases forged of the best of metal by 
skilled armourers, and inlaid with silver or gold. 

One day in the seventh month (June 26th), in the year 1281, 
watchers on the hills of Daizaifu were startled by the sight of this vast 
squadron coming majestically up the bay, until it had ranged itself proudly 
and triumphantly off the castled city. 

Couriers were immediately sent in every direction to spread the omi- 




PUBLIC GARDEX, MUKOJIMA. 



nous news, while the armed forces prepared to meet the invaders in a life 
and death struggle. In order to prevent a landing of the enemy, the 
Japanese began to send out boats to engage in hand-to-hand fights. For 
fighting upon the water the Japanese were poorly equipped. Their boats 
were slight affairs when compared to the Chinese, and afforded no pro- 
tection to the occupants. This shows that, until then, or later, the 
Japanese had given little consideration to maritime warfare. On the 
other hand, the weapons of the islanders were far better than those of 



Coolies Celebrating a Holiday 



JAPAN. 303 

the invading horde. The samurai's pride was his skill with his strong 
bow, often seven feet long, while his armour was a flexible combination of 
metal plate greatly superior to that worn by the Chinese, which must have 
been clumsy and warm for the wearer. Another weapon in considerable 
favour with the Japanese was the long glaive, with its crescent-shaped 
blade. But the weapon par excellence among the fighting gentry of 
Japan was the keen-edged, finely tempered sword that has become so 
closely linked with the war fame of the nobles of Japan. The Chinese 
blade was a poor ins^trument of destruction when compared with those of 
their rivals, and when this deadly weapon was wielded by the skilful and 
untiring arm of the samurai, this difference was made doubly significant. 

The Japanese accounts of this critical battle with the Mongol invaders 
are filled with vivid descriptions of personal prowess, which the followers 
of Kublai Khan could not match. They tried in vain to effect a land- 
ing, while the brave Japanese continued to swim out to them, besides 
those who went in boats, many of them paying for their daring with their 
lives. One intrepid captain, named Kusanojiro, selecting a crew of fearless 
men, sculled out to a war-junk, and in spite of the storm of arrows, spears, 
and darts hurtled about their heads, boarded the Corean boat. Here the 
doughty leader, already suffering the loss of an arm, directed such a 
furious attack that before assistance could come to the Coreans, he had 
won the day. Setting fire to the junk, he and his surviving companions 
escaped with a score of heads as grim trophies of their valour. 

The Mongol commander now arranged his fleet in a huge semicircle, 
linking vessel to vessel with iron chains, and, mounting huge catapults, 
— bow-guns of immense size and carrying death-dealing darts, — formed a 
barrier the light craft of the Japanese could not reach without the most 
desperate feats. But, although holding their assailants at arm's length, 
they were kept at bay, and the mighty armada found itself unable to gain 
a landing on Japanese soil. Over two thousand lost their lives in learning 
this fact. 

The Japanese had now constructed miles of fortifications along the 
shore, though these were of the simplest kind, consisting of parapets of 
stone from two to six feet in height, or wooden palisades. There was 
no flank defence, the only object being to obtain a shelter from the 
missiles of the enemy, not high enough to interfere with the use of 



304 



THE FAR EAST. 



the bow. In addition to the ordinary bow described already, a cross-bow, 
said to have come originally from Corea about the year 600 A. D., was 
used on this occasion. This was a powerful weapon, sometimes requiring 
as many as a hundred men of lusty sinews to handle. Those most 
common, however, needed onh* two strong fellows. From behind their 

rude breastwork 
the defenders of 
Dai Nippon fought 
for their native 
land. 

The hero of this 
hour was a captain 
named Michiari, 
^^' h o had 1 o n g 
prayed to his gods 
that he might meet 
in battle the wild 
horde of Mongols, 
whose terrific fame 
had overspread the 
Far East. This 
doughty warrior 
had written his 
prayers on paper, 
and, burning the 
same, had swal- 
lowed the ashes 
that he might gain 
his wishes. Now that the opportunity had come, he lost no time in fit- 
ting out two boats wdth crews of his own undaunted spirit, and they went 
forth to meet the overwhelming enemies. His companions shut their eyes 
at the sight of his foolhardiness. The Mongols were at first amazed at 
his audacity, and then believing that his purpose was to surrender, re- 
frained from firing until it was too late to retrieve their error. Upon 
reaching the nearest Tartar junk, the Japanese threw out their grappling- 
hooks, and a moment later sprang upon the boat of the enemy. A 




HODO CASCADE, NIKKO. 



JAPAN. 



305 



furious combat ensued, but the keen two-edged swords in the hands of 
the best swordsmen of Japan proved more than a match for the soldiers 
of Kublai. Soon overcoming the Mongols, and setting the junk on fire, 
Captain Michiari and the survivors among his crew started back toward 
the shore, carrying . among their captives an officer of high command in 
the Mongol fleet. 

Many deeds of this valorous nature are recorded, and these so fired 
the blood of the Japanese that reinforcements rapidly increased the 




HAND -CART. 



number of the Hojo army, while about this time the news was carried to 
Kyoto that the invaders had succeeded in landing, and were advancing 
toward the interior in overwhelming numbers. Excitement of the wildest 
kind reigned everywhere. " From the monasteries and temples all over 
the country went up unceasing prayer to the gods to ruin their enemies 
and save the land of Japan. ^ The emperor and the ex-emperor went in 
solemn state to the chief priest of Shinto, and, writing out their petitions 
to the gods, sent him as a messenger to the shrines at Ise. It is recorded, 
as a miraculous fact, that at that hour of noon, as the sacred envoy arrived 

1 Griffis. 



306 THE FAR EAST. 

at the shrine and offered the prayer, — the day being perfectly clear, — 
a streak of cloud appeared in the sky, which soon overspread the heavens, 
until the dense masses portended a storm of awful violence. One of these 
cyclones, called by the Japanese tai-fu, or okase, of appalling velocity and 
resistless force, such as whirl along the coasts of Japan and China during 
late summer and early fall of every year, burst upon the Chinese fleet. 
Nothing can withstand these maelstroms of the air. Iron steamships 
of thousands of horse-power are almost unmanageable in them. Junks 
are helpless ; the Chinese were these only. They were butted together 
like mad bulls. They were impaled on the rocks, dashed against 
the cliffs, or tossed on the land like corks from the spray. They were 
blown over until they careened and filled. Heavily freighted with human 
beings, they sunk by hundreds. The corpses were piled on the shore; 
or, floating on the water driven out to sea, may have reached the main- 
land, but were probably overwhelmed. The vessels of the survivors, in 
large numbers, drifted to or were wrecked on Taka Island, where they 
established themselves, and cutting down trees, began building boats to 
reach Corea. Here they were attacked by the Japanese, and, after a 
bloody struggle, all the fiercer for the despair on the one side and the 
exultation on the other, were all slain or driven into the sea to be 
drowned, except three, who were sent back to tell their emperor how the 
gods of Japan had destroyed their armada." 

Thus with accounts of valiant deeds, interwoven with tales of supersti- 
tion, the Japanese show how they and their gods saved Dai Nippon from 
the Asiatic conquerors. By the way, it seems to be the records of all 
centuries that armadas are doomed to meet a tragic end by storm rather 
than from the resistance of those whom they sought to conquer. Two 
notable examples of this kind, from the many that might be given, were 
the stormy fate of the Spanish fleet in English waters, and in 1745 that of 
the French armada which was sent to vanquish the Ncav England colonists, 
but which was itself destroyed by the equinoctial storms of the Atlantic. 

Fortunately Japan has never been threatened with another invasion of 
this kind, but the memory of that one still lives in the minds of the 
people, and the mothers of Kyushu even now seek to hush their crying 
babies by declaring, in a low tone : " Lie still and slumber, or the Moko 
(Mongols) will come again ! " 



CHAPTER XXXII. 

THE RISE OF THE SHOGUNS. 

WITH the overthrow of the Hojo clan the exiled emperor, Go- 
Daiga, was restored to power. But he seemed to have lost his 
former integrity and ability to govern justly, and he made the 
grossest of mistakes. He sought to reward those whom he wished by 
bestowing vast estate upon them, rewarding least of all the brave Nitta 
and the faithful Kusimoki, while to those who deserved the least, and were 
really plotting his ruin, he gave liberally of tlie spoils of war. Among 
these last was a companion of Nitta named Ashikaga, who soon began 
to plot to place himself at the head of the military power. Through the 
assistance of a woman, who wielded great influence over the emperor, he 
succeeded so far that he divided the people into two great factions. 
Placing himself at the head of one, he boldly proclaimed that Go-Daiga did 
not belong to the rightful line of rulers, but that one Kozen was the true 
son of Heaven. This impostor declared Ashikaga Sei-i Tai shogun, and 
in 1336 liis rival dynasty established Kamakura anew as the military 
capital of Japan. A civil war followed, worse in its outcome than the 
struggle between the red and white banners of the Taira and the Genji, — 
a war of rival emperors. 

Nitta espoused the cause of the true emperor, and met the fate of a 
hero on a battle-field at the head of his slain comrades, his last act being 
to cut off his own head to save it from his enemies. The tomb of this 
gallant soldier is in Echizen, near the spot where he fell, and to this day 
his grave is strewn with flowers by those who cherish his memory, and 
repeat in song and story his valiant deeds. That other hero of the period, 
Kusunoki, who is considered the purest patriot of the Dark Ages of 
Japan, after having his advice ignored, and seeing only ruin and disgrace 
ahead, retired to a farmhouse in the country, and, sending his wife and 
child on before him, went down into the dark valley by that death the 
true soldier always preferred — the hara-kiri. One hundred and fifty of 

307 



308 



THE FAR EAST. 



liis warriors imitated his example, and as many as twelve nobles did the 
same. 

This dual system of rule, or attempted rule, which lasted over two 
hundred years, or from 1336 to 1573, is the least interesting of any 
period of Japanese history. It has less of chivalry and more of cruel and 
useless sacrifice of human life. It was the Dark Age of Japan. 

The next conspicuous figure which flits across the checkered panorama 




BISH-COVEREI) CLIFFS, KAGOSHIMA. 



of feudalism is that of Nobunaga, a descendant of Kiyomori, who appeared 
on the scene in 1542. It was he who ended the Ashikaga usurpation. 
He was an able general, and, what was of fully as much importance, 
he called about him the ablest quintette of warriors that Japan ever 
knew. The names of two of these have already been mentioned several 
times. The group comprised Hideyoshi, Goroza, Shibata, Ikeda, and last 
but not least, lyeyasu. Shibata belonged to the same family as Nobunaga. 
The last-named gained possession of half a dozen provinces, among them 



JAPAN. 



309 



Ise and Echizen, and obtained control also of Kyoto, where he built the 
fine castle of Nijo. He made Ashikaga Yoshiaki shogun, but becoming 
dissatisfied with that official he removed him in 1564 ; this was the last 
of the Sei-i Tai shogunate, until one of his generals, lyeyasu, secured 
it forty years later under the title of the Tokugawa shogun. If Nobunaga 
did not become shogun, he governed in the name of the emperor, until 
he was driven to death by the treachery of his followers. Although truly 




A MONASTERY GARDEN AT MKJvO. 



a great general, and having done a good work for Japan, he won the 
undying hatred of the Buddhists by his lack of faith in their religion, and 
by declaring that the worship of their gods was vain, their images impos- 
tures. Nor did he stop here, but he struck the first blow against the 
" Flower of Religion," which had thrived with wonderful prodigality under 
the Ashikaga. He dared to attack one of their monasteries, and, after 
tearing down the walls, set fire to the shrines and temples. He struck 
with a force and success against the faith, that is felt at the present time. 
No wonder the Buddhists abhor the name Ota Nobunaga, who has slept 



310 



THE FAR EAST. 



through three hundred years of hatred in an unmarked grave, on a hill 
overlooking the azure waters of peaceful Lake Biwa, and within sight of 
the fortified walls of Hikone. 

Nobunaga's foremost lieutenant was Hideyoshi, who, it has been said, 
was the most remarkable man in Japanese history. He was the son of 
a peasant, ill of feature and small of stature. But he did not mingle with 
the other boys of his acquaintance, preferring to seek more exciting scenes. 
Finally he became a hetto, or groom, who cared for Nobunaga's horses. 





HARVESTING RICE. 



Seeing that the youth possessed unwonted fire and marked cunning, this 
general advised him to become a soldier. He had no family name then, 
but in 1562 he adopted that by which he is best known, though he an- 
swered to several others during his active career. In 1591 he took the 
title of Taiko. Not only was he slight of stature and misshapen, but his 
countenance was so Aveazened and his eyes were so bright as to gain for 
him from the enemies whom he had conquered in battle the epithet of the 
"crowned monkey." While he was a great strategist and soldier, his 
happiest quality was his ability to win over to his support, by sharp device 
and skilful argument, those whom a less astute man would have made 



JAPAN. 311 

enemies. His banner was the singular device of a cluster of gourds, and 
wherever that golden emblem waved, was the scene of victory, except on 
one occasion, which shall be described later on. 

At the time of Nobunaga's untimely death, Hideyoshi, with one of the 
former's sons, was fighting at the head of the imperial army to hold 
the provinces of the West. Upon learning of the disaster to his com- 
mander, he hastened to Kyoto to capture the traitor who had brought 
it about. Getting separated from his followers during an engagement 
with the enemy, he barely escaped with his life by urging his horse 
through a rice-swamp until reaching a small Shinto temple. Driving 
his horse back, he entered the place just as the priests were about to 
bathe. Disrobing, he pkmged in with the others, and his pursuers, coming 
along a few minutes later, failed to recognise him, and changed the search 
to another direction. Hideyoshi rejoined his troops. Twelve days later 
he encountered the army of the usurper on the banks of the river Kodo, 
and completely routed the force. The leader, finding he was likely to 
be captured, committed hara-kiri. His head was borne in triumph through 
the streets of Kyoto. The emperor rewarded Hideyoshi with the highest 
honours in his gift. 

He was now paramount in power. Of the other generals of Nobunaga, 
lyeyasu was fighting Hojo of Odawara, in order to hold eight provinces in 
the Kuanto. Shibata, who was a brother-in-law to Nobunaga, was at 
Echizen, guarding the rights of the emperor's third son in that quarter. 
Hideyoshi saw his opportunity, and he was the last man to miss the 
golden chance. 

In a little temple standing under a pine grove at Fukui, in Echizen, the 
visitor to-day is shown the fragments of a rusty, corroded armour, which 
he concludes must have been worn by some valiant warrior of the days of 
feudalism. As his guide notices the interest with which he views the 
ancient relic, his eye kindles, and he says : 

" The armour of Shibata, the brave samurai, who died as a true warrior 
dies, defending his castle against the Tokaido over three hundred years 
ago. Upon learning that the Tokaido was coming to attack him, he 
prepared for such a defence as he could make at his castle. But great 
numbers were against him, and seeing the inevitable result, he resolved 
to meet his fate as became the dignity of his race. Calling his followers 



312 



THE FAR EAST. 



about him, he offered them an opportunity to escape by surrender, saying 
that for himself he preferred death at his own hands. To a man, they 
declared that they would perish with him. Thereupon Shibata ordered a 
feast to be prepared, at the same time making preparations to have the 
castle fired at several places simultaneously at a signal from him. He 
then sent for his wife, Odani, who belonged to a noble race, and the other 
The wine-cups were filled to overflowing, and a merry dance 



women. 




THE GOLDEN PAVILION, KYOTO. 



was begun. At its height Shibata told his wife the true purpose of the 
festival, and advised her to flee with their children and the other women 
of the castle. But she proved her loyalty by remaining with him, while 
of all the others not a woman deserted her husband. Then the revelry 
was resumed with renewed ardour, and at the proper time the fires were 
ignited. As the flames leaped up the walls of the doomed castle, the last 
and most tragic act in the wild drama was enacted. The victor of that 
clay's battle, Hideyoshi, found only for his reward the dead bodies of 



JAPAN. 313 

Shibata's wife and children, his own, and those of his faithful followers. 
Dost doubt this example of heroic devotion unto death ? Near by are the 
ruins of the old castle, whose charred walls shielded the actors in that 
tragedy. Under the ancient pine rests all that was mortal of Shibata and 
his wife Odani, w^ho was the noble sister of Nobunaga, with a soul none 
the less true and brave because she was a woman." 

This simple tale is but an illustration of Japanese history, telling in a 
brief paragraph, it may be in a single sentence, how deeds that shaped 
the destiny of the " Island of Nine Provinces " are treated. If this 
barrenness of details serves to rob the scenes of the interest that Occi- 
dental historians delight in, it brings them out in such bold relief as no 
annalist of modern days has succeeded in doing for his scenes and his 
people. As it is with Shibata and his loyal wife and defenders, so are 
pictured nearly all of the foremost figures of Japan's warlike career. I'or 
this reason we fail to feel and understand the inner motives of their lives, 
and though our imagination may restore the ruined castle with its 
numerous armed retainers, rehabilitate the fire-eaten links of the shattered 
armour, with the heroic form that wore them, or, from the ashes in the 
grave under the lonely pine, revivify the beautiful figure of the heroic 
wife, we cannot breathe into these imaginative bodies the spirit of Japa- 
nese chivalry. 

There remained one other of Nobunaga's generals for Hideyoshi to 
conquer, and he was the youngest of the great five, lyeyasu, afterward 
to share with him the honours of war and peace. So the Taiko led his 
army against the then little-known warrior, and for the first and only 
time in his dazzling career was Hideyoshi defeated. While amazed at this 
outcome, he showed himself shrewd enough to profit by it, as no other 
man of his time would have done. Seeing in lyeyasu wonderful qualities 
that might be made useful to him, instead of seeking further contention 
with the other, he offered him his friendship, promised him his sister in 
marriage, and the government of the province of Kuanto, which lay about 
Yedo. lyeyasu was keen-sighted enough to see that he was on the losing 
side, and he accepted the terms of the Taiko, so that henceforth the two 
were friends and allies. 

His enemies overcome, Hideyoshi returned to Kyoto to enter upon that 
part of his career which has reflected the most credit upon his name, and 



314 



THE FAR EAST. 



has brought the greatest benefit to his country. Realising that soldiers 
in times of peace must be kept active in order to maintain good order, he 
began to improve the ancient capital, paved the bed of the river Kamo 
with flat stones, and reared magnificent palaces. He also deepened the 
river at Osaka, and dug many of the great number of canals which 
entitles this city to be called the " Venice of Japan." He originated the 
commercial greatness of the city, Avhich makes it in modern times of so 
much importance. He reared powerful fortifications about Kyoto, built 




the great fortress of Osaka, the ruins of which are pointed out with pride 
to-day, and at different places erected castles, towers, and pagodas. The 
first in high power ever to forgive his enemies and win them over to his 
good, caring little for rank or family prestige, he became extremely popu- 
lar, and under him Japan made great strides in progress and reforms. 

Not being of Minamoto blood, Hidej^oshi could not be made a shogun, 
though his actual power was scarcely crippled by this fact. Surrounded 
as he was by the nobility, he felt the need of establishing his identity 
with an ancestry which should place his family upon a respectable footing. 



Tokio Castle Wall and Moat Filled with 
Lotus Plants 



JAPAN. 



315 



The fact that so little Avas really known of his ancestors, made his task the 
easier, and he showed that, while his mother in dire distress had married a 
peasant, she was of noble lineage, and that he had been conceived before 
her marriage with his supposed father. He had married a peasant girl in 
his youth, but from time to time he took unto himself other women of 
good families, until his Avives numbered half a dozen, all of whom he 
retained in harmoni- 
ous relationship. 

Perhaps the great- 
est mistake of his 
life was his scheme 
to conquer Corea, 
a n d u 1 1 i m a t e 1 y 
China. It had been 
the pet idea of his 
ambitious boyhood 
to seize Corea and 
China, and to make 
the three (Japan be- 
ing the third) into 
one nation, and this 
dream lost none of 
its fascination when 
he had become a 
man. He once de- 
clared to Nobunaga 
that he could over- 
power those coun- 
tries as easily as one 
could roll up an old mat and carry it away under his arm. China at that 
time was badly disorganised, and the pirates then ranging the coast had 
cut off almost entirely the trade between Japan and Corea. Accordingly, 
in 1592 he fitted out an expedition to conquer Corea, but did not accom- 
pany it himself, as he had intended, on account of the pleadings of his 
aged mother to remain behind. He was then sixty years of age, and quite 
infirm. Though this army was bitterly fought by the Coreans, it was 




VIEW OF MIYAXOSHITA ROAD. 



316 THE FAR EAST. 

successful, killing, it is claimed, in one fight, ten thousand of the latter, 
the ears of whom were cut off and brought home as trophies. There 
still stands in Kyoto a monument which is a grim reminder of that 
ill-fated day. It is called the Mimidzuka, or ear-tomb, and above a bar- 
row containing the ears of the Coreans, rise a cube, sphere, pagoda, block, 
topped by two spheroids, the top stone having a pointed crest. The whole 
is nearly ninety feet in height. 

Unfortunately for the complete success of the plans of Hideyoshi, his 
leaders quarrelled among themselves. One was a devout Christian, as 
were many of the captains of the expedition, while another hated the very 
name ; and away from the influence of their master these chiefs became 
intense enemies. Thus Hideyoshi was obliged to accept a suspension of 
hostilities. The Emperor of China, believing that this quarrel meant the 
decay of power in Japan, sent an envoy to establish a suzerainty over the 
island empire. Aroused at this impudence, Hideyoshi seized the official 
document and tore it into shreds before the eyes of the Chinese ambassa- 
dors, declaring that he would not rest until he had conquered China and 
brought her under his dominion. But he did not live to carry out his 
intentions. In the midst of his preparations he was stricken down with 
his fatal illness. 

It had been the great hope of Hideyoshi to establish his family in the 
regular line of succession to his achievements. But, while his di:fferent 
wives had borne him several children, only one son had been given him, 
and he was an infant at this time. Knowing that his end was near, 
Hideyoshi called lyeyasu, his brother-in-law and most powerful ally, to his 
side, and made him promise to do all that he could to make his young son, 
Hideyori, his successor. Satisfied with this arrangement, he died, in 1598, 
in the sixty-second year of his age, having reaped a harvest of fame second 
to no man in Japan. 

The era of Taiko is noted for its glory in many respects. During that 
period Japan reached its highest commercial success ; it built then vessels 
three times the size of the junks that have since carried on its sea-trade ; 
its inhabitants ventured into the far-distant seas, and, bent on trade or 
piracy, made voyages to southern China, India, Burmah, the Malay 
Archipelago, and the Philippines ; the Island of Luzon, known to them as 
Roson, was a frequent place of visitation, where to-day are to be found 



JAPAN. 



317 



many descendants of those bold navigators, whose power was known and 
felt far and wide. The remains of him who was the ruling spirit at home 
during this interval, were placed in a grave on a hill on the western slopes 
of the imperial city, but the temple erected to mark the spot, by his wife, 
was long since burned, and the tomb of the illustrious founder of Japanese 
modern greatness is unknown. But such names as his need no stone to 
perpetuate their 
memory. He has 
been compared to 
Yoshitsune, but 
their reputations 
should not clash. 
Both won great 
battles, but if the 
latter was the 
greater general, it 
was largely because 
the former saw 
greater possibilities 
in the arts of polit- 
ical craft. 

" The age of the 
Taiko" was marked 
by another trying 
period of religious 
life, which was born 
under the reign of 
Nobunaga, and ex- 
pired under the 
government of Hideyoshi's successor. This was the attempted planting 
of the Christian cross in place of the flower of Buddhism on Japanese 
soil. Nobunaga had favoured the Jesuit missionaries, and at first the 
Taiko was inclined to follow in his footsteps, but in 1587 he issued 
an edict for the banishment of all foreigners, these Jesuits having 
found their way to Japan soon after Columbus had discovered America 
and while Spain was trying to found an empire in the New World. 




LAKE AND PAVILION, KYOTO. 



318 



THE FAR EAST. 



Hideyoshi's order was so far obeyed that all Jesuit churches were closed, 
though the friars continued to seek converts to their faith. The Taiko's 
son, who had been entrusted to the care of lyeyasu, looked with favour on 
the Christians, but the more astute guardian thought that he saw in them 




A TOKYO LANDSCAPE GARDEN. 



fomentors of strife and an ultimate foreign government for Japan, and he 
opposed them root and branch. 

The contention grew more bitter, until again Japan rang with the mar- 
tial tread of armies, and the thunder of battle. In October, 1600, was 
fought at Sekigahara, in the province of Owari, the closing and greatest 
battle of five centuries of war. lyeyasu was accused of disloyalty to his 
old patron, but leading his army to victory on that memorable day, he won 
by that triumph the first place in power. Three years later he was made 
shogun whether he wished the office or not, and thus was founded the 
Tokugawa dynasty, which stood the test of rival powers for two hundred 



JAPAN. 319 

and sixty-seven years, or down to 1868. The last to yield to him was 
Shimazu of Satsuma, and the greatest sufferer was Mori of Chosu, who 
lost by that day's reverse six out of eight provinces which had acknowl- 
edged fealty to him. It may have been the irony of fate that, when the 
Tokugawa reign ended, the fatal blow was dealt by the lines of Satsuma 
and Chosu. Be that as it may, lyeyasu's victory for the first time united 
Japan into one country. 

Hideyori persisting in entertaining the Jesuit priests, lyeyasu resorted 
to arms to crush out this foreign spirit, and on the 9th of June, 1615, laid 
siege to the fortified castle of Osaka. Again the tide of victory turned in 
his favour ; Hideyori perished in the flaming fortress, and the cause 
of Catholicism received its death-blow. This was the last great battle 
fought on Japanese soil. By it was settled the claims to rule of the lines 
of Nobunaga and Hideyoshi. Foreign interposition was ended, and the 
isolation of Japan from the world fixed for over two centuries and a 
half. This was the calm which follows the battle ; the rest which comes 
after the tiresome task of ages. 

In no case is the lack of the minor facts concerning the lives of Japan's 
great men more felt than in that of the early life of the hero of this 
era. He was born at Okasaki, in Mikawa, in 1542, and that he was a 
warrior of no slight skill, courage, and rapidity of action, is assured by his 
recorded triumphs of war. But in the brief period of peace given him 
after his warlike victories to exercise his great gifts as a statesman, his 
other wonderful achievements are quite forgotten. All through the long 
and troublesome epochs of feudal Japan, the real cause of the never 
ceasing disturbances was the marked lack of men endowed with the 
genius of civil powers. There was a surfeit of military men of high 
order, but of statesmen there was a woful defi^ciency. Thus warrior after 
warrior fought or intrigued to gain and hold his power, with no legitimate 
idea of government save by the sword, and seldom was any attempt made 
to conciliate rival interests. We are speaking of the actual power, — the 
power behind and beyond the throne. As we have shown, the imperial 
line was a nonentity. The Soga regime originated this plot of dual gov- 
ernment, — the placing of a military power over the civil ; it was 
strengthened twofold under the Fujiwara ; intensified under the Taira ; 
to be made yet more reprehensible under the Genji, and Hojo, with. 



320 



THE FAR EAST. 



their " shadow shoguns ; " and it was left for the Ashikaga to recon- 
struct this peculiar system. Through it all continued that singular 
dual allegiance of the people, undying attachment to the imperial 
family, and loyal devotion to the military usurpers. 

It was left for lyeyasu to build on this foundation of sand a structure 
of government which was to end five hundred years of bloodshed, and 
establish three hundred years of peace and prosperity. It was no small 
statesman who could so far project his gaze into the future from out of 




MURAL CARVINGS, NIKKO. 



the tempest of strife in which he had been born and bred. For this house 
to have stood so long, the natural conclusion is that he must have left 
successors who were able to carry out the work begun by him. The per- 
manency of his achievements is largely due to his grandson, lyemitsu, who 
followed so closely in his footsteps that the Tokugawa power was estab- 
lished beyond peradventure for many generations. lyemitsu was the third 
shogun in this line, his father having helped forward the plans of his 
parent. Among others in the line who were powerful in upholding the 
regime was Tsunayoshi, the fifth shogun; Yoshimune, the eighth; and 



JAPAN. 



321 



lyenari, the eleventh, all rulers of ability. Tsunayoshi was a great patron 
of literature, while the last named raised the dynasty to its highest stand- 
ard of government at the end of his reign, in 1838. Twenty-nine years 
later the last shogun, the survivor of fourteen generations, quietly laid 
aside the sceptre of power and went into retirement, when the imperial line 




A LOTUS LAKE, (ilXKAKl.JI 



assumed its legitimate place at the head of the government and moved 
with its court to Tokyo. 

It was the policy of lyeyasu to place the emperor so far above the plane 
of the people as to be out of the reach of the intrigues and revolutions of 
ambitious men. In the minds and hearts of his subjects, he was the 
" son of High Heaven." He was isolated and must not be troubled with 
the trials of the common people. Not even the nobles were permitted to 
gaze upon him except through a curtain of finely woven bamboo. Having 
established this state of affairs, the shogun, who derived his power direct 
from the emperor, held it in his hands to put down any insurrection not 
sanctioned by the sovereign as a direct rebellion. Every insurgent was 



322 THE FAR EAST. 

treated as a traitor, not to the shogunate, but to the imperial house. 
Having fortified himself and his successors in this manner, l3^eyasu recon- 
structed the whole country of Feudal Japan with the wisdom and courage 
of a master at the art of statecraft. He created about two hundred and 
fifty provinces, held by as many military nobles, and these were eventually 
divided into nine thousand petty fiefs. The military holders of the larger 
divisions had absolute power within their own dominions, but had to 
render tribute to the shogun, and to live half of the year at Tokyo, 
lyeyasu was shrewd enough to make the majority of his vassals men upon 
whom he could depend, while the others were so scattered upon this 
checker-board of country rule that they could not unite in a revolution 
against the head of the power. So long as a noble remained faithful to 
his shogun, so long was he guaranteed protection from the encroachments 
of his neighbours. The people were divided into four classes, ranking in 
the order following : the samurai, or " gentlemen soldiers," who held land 
by virtue of their military service, and enjoyed many privileges ; the 
farmers, or tillers of the soil ; artisans, including artists, and merchants, at 
the foot of the list. Of course such a prodigious plan could not be carried 
out in a day or a generation. His son helped along the work begun, while 
the grandson, lyemitsu, did so much that he has been credited by some as 
the originator of the scheme. 

It will be seen that no established code of laws existed controlling the 
relations between the nobles and the governed classes, but lyeyasu, in his 
celebrated " Book of the Institutes," advised his successors to deal kindly 
wdth their subjects, and to stamp out as rapidly as possible the long-fixed 
custom of hara-kiri, or suicide, which had been a favourite method of 
death for centuries. A serious task for the student of history is that of 
tracing the origin and growth of this system of autocratic government, 
which gives evidence of a foresight, a moderation, and a sagacity hardly to 
have been expected from lords whose incomes varied from fifty thousand 
dollars to five millions annually, and with a power almost absolute. If 
any noble abused his privileges, the head at Tokyo did not hesitate to 
enforce the iron rule belonging to this system of feudal sovereignty. An- 
other method of punishment was to impose the task of building some great 
public work whenever the conduct of a lord became such as to attract 
public attention. 




CIIEKKY IJLOSSOMS. 



JAPAN. 



323 



It may seem impossible that a government constructed on such a simple, 
and it may be clumsy, plan could meet the exigencies of the changing 
times, but this conclusion is reached without understanding the deep- 
rooted fealty of the personnel of the government founded by the astute 
lyeyasu, who, if he builded better than he knew, reared a structure 
destined to withstand the storms of nearly three centuries, and then to 
fall without so much as shaking the inner walls. Under this simple form 
of rule the country increased in prosperity, the poorer classes growing 
richer, and the samurai, with some exceptions, developing education and 




HARA -KIRI. 



the military arts. Under this regime a new literature sprang into exist- 
ence, the drama of romance and the novel of adventure appeared, while 
numerous artists of talent left work that has survived the criticism of 
following generations. 

The line between classes during the Tokugawa dynasty was drawn very 
closely. The general division was the same as that described, and con- 
sisted of four degrees, the military standing at the head and the trades- 
man at the foot. But in reality this distinction did , not include a 
considerable number of people who were considered to be below respectable 
humanity. For that reason the following classification more accurately 



324 THE FAR EAST. 

describes the relations of society: first, the kuge, or court nobility of 
Kyoto ; second, the daimios, or court nobility of Yedo ; third, the huke, 
or samurai of a rank under the daimio ; fourth, the hiyakusJio, tillers of 
the soil and untitled landholders ; fifth, the shokonm, artisans and me- 
chanics, including also artists ; sixth, the akindo, or traders, merchants, 
and sho23keepers ; seventh, actors, polite beggars, prostitutes, etc. ; eighth, 
eta, Mniuy tanners and skinners. The native terms descriptive of the last 
class should be understood to refer to a class not considered human, — 
beggars who squatted on land unfit for cultivation, and who dwelt in filth 
and rags. In some localities rows of their huts were to be seen, while 
the degenerate builders were miles away, soliciting such alms and bits of 
food as they could obtain from those more provident and fortunate than 
themselves. They were barred from entering the houses of the better 
classes, or even from warming their benumbed hands by the same fire. 
The second term signified those who Hve by grave-digging, burying dead 
animals, and dealing in their hides. Besides their begging, the liinins 
were sought to execute criminals and dispose of their remains when dead. 
Notwithstanding the bad odour a description of this last class throws over 
the situation, the social condition of Japan was better than it had ever 
been before, and was being steadily purified. 

The Augustus of this golden era spent the closing years of his life at 
Sumpu, now Shidzuoka, looking kindly and wisely after the interest of his 
people, and at his death, March 8, 1616, he was entombed at Kuno Zan. 
A year later his son caused his remains to be removed to Nikko, within 
sound of the Kiri Furi (falling mist), and under the snow-crowned Nataizan 
Mountain, with the pomp and glory of pageantry befitting the grandest 
figure in Japanese life. The artist of his day pictures him as of medium 
size, well-formed figure, a round, plump countenance, beaming with good 
nature, and one upon whom care sat lightly. He was of untiring will, 
and it is claimed never allowed himself to be defeated in any purpose that 
he undertook. Unlike Hideyoshi, who arranged on paper an ancestry to 
suit his pleasure, and rising from a homely, simple peasant, astounded his 
friends and confounded his enemies by his remarkable tactics and indomi- 
table mind, lyeyasu came of pure Genji blood. He was descended from 
the early conquerors of Japan, and belonged by right to the imperial line 
of the " sons of High Heaven." His glory eclipsed them all. 




LAKE SCENERY AT KOMAGOME. 



CHAPTER XXXIII, 



SONS OF THE SWORD. 



NOTWITHSTANDING his noble lineage, with all the great power 
at his command, the hero-worship bestowed upon him in life, and 
the glory that crowned his tomb, it must be remembered still that 
lyeyasu was, at his highest, the guardian of the imperial person. He was 
in truth a vassal of the emperor, owning his office at the other's will. He 
was in rank below the lowest kuge, and in the same class as the daimios. 
In fact, he was only the most powerful of the second, or Yedo class, as 
described in our last chapter. Like many others of the illustrious train 
of Japanese heroes, he had won his prestige with his sword ; indeed, they 
may all be called sons of the sword. As it was with lyeyasu, so was it 
with his successors down to, and including, Keiki, the Cromwell of Japan. 
When he, reading in the signs of the times the rapidly approaching end of 
the military autocracy, wisely retired from the cares and vicissitudes of war 
to a retreat of peaceful seclusion, the sword that had upheld feudalism for 
centuries and had been the staff of ambitious usurpers, lost its association 
with chivalry, and was greatest in the deeds that were a memory. 

325 



326 THE FAR EAST. 

• 

The sword has pLayed such an hnportant and romantic part in the 
history of Feudal Japan, that anything like a full account of it would fill 
a large volume of curious and interesting reading. The sword was the 
cross of olden Japan, and the flashing emblem of power both divine and 
human. At the great Shinto shrine of Ise, the visitor at this distant day 
is shown three objects of reverential interest, which have been guarded 
through all the ages with zealous care. These were given to the Emperor 
Jimmu as keepsakes, after he had conquered the world. The first of these 
is the sword, supposed to typify strength and warlike shrewdness ; second, 
the crystal, emblematical of the justice by which the first was to rule ; and 
third, the mirror, which was to reflect the purity of the deeds of the others. 
It has been the attributes of these three which have ever upheld the 
peculiar dignity of the nobility of Japan. The first being in reality the 
badge of divine authority, the two-sworded gentry of the country composed 
the true nobility. 

Though there were numerous varieties of these weaj^ons, the swords 
worn by- the samurai were invariably a large and a small one. He might 
own as many others as his circumstances would afford, and from among 
them choose his favourite pair. The etiquette of the sword was intricate 
and elaborate, imposing and striking, requiring years to master. This 
two-sworded gentleman, in making a call, was expected to leave his large 
sword in the hall in charge of an attendant ; if the host was an official of 
high rank he was bound to leave both behind him, as a guarantee of good 
faith and confidence in the other. It was held to be a grave insult to 
allow one's sword to strike against that of another, while a feint to draw 
was accepted as a challenge to battle. It was never polite to draw the 
weapon from its sheath in the presence of another, without first asking 
the consent of that party. To move the sword by the foot or otherwise 
toward a person was considered by that individual as an insult, which 
must be erased by a duel to the death. These give but a faint idea of 
numerous and bewildering rules which governed the usage of the danger- 
ous blade. 

Of the many kinds of swords there were the ken^ a product of the 
sixteenth century, made long, slender, and double-edged. This was suc- 
ceeded by the hatana, a weapon slightly curved toward the point, and 
having but one edge. The short sword was worn with this to denote the 



JAPAN. 



327 



high standing of the samurai. The members of lower ranks, such as 
doctors, artisans, artists, were obUged to carry short swords, or dirks, that 
had no guards. The ancient instrument of deadly work was about three 
feet in length, with two edges, and was wielded by both hands. The 
scabbard of this was inlaid in silver or bronze, and showed skilful work- 
manship in its artistic shape. Another sword, used in suicide, or hara-kiri, 
was less than a foot in length. The swords of the nobles were wrought 
by armourers, quite as famous in their country as those who produced 




JAPAN i: S E K I r C H E N . 



the renowned blades of Toledo and Damascus were in their lands. The 
Japanese weapons were, as a rule, made of fine elastic iron and steel 
combined, and, according to traditions of them, capable of being bent 
until both ends met. They were tempered so as to cut other metals, such 
as copper, without injuring their razor-like edges. 

Mr. Mitford, in his excellent " Tales of Old Japan," relates that the 
occupation of the sword-maker was regarded as a noble calling, and 
that those of gentle blood often followed the vocation. He says that, 
while living in Osaka, he knew a swordsmith who was noted for his 
benevolence and kind deeds. " His idea was, that, having been bred up to 



328 



THE FAR EAST. 



a calling which trades in life and death, he was bound, so far as in him 
lay, to atone for this by seeking to alleviate the suffering which is in the 
world ; and he carried out this principle to the extent of impoverishing 
himself. What was true of this man applied to the class as a rule." It 
was Mr. Mitford's fortune to witness the passing of the old order for the 
new, the Great Transition which has placed Japan among the really strong 
nations of modern times. Only recently did the samurai cling to his 




SPINNING SILK. 



sword, and whatever the effect on the social standing of the country, there 
was no man bold enough to rob him of that right. Talking with a man 
of liberal mind and advanced ideas for his surroundings, Mr. Mitford 
received this prophetic reply : " I would that all the swords and dirks in 
this country might be collected in one place and molten down ; from the 
metal so produced one sword might be forged, which, being the only blade 
left, should be the girded sword of great Japan." The speaker little 
dreamed how soon his words were to come true, in the passing of the 



JAPAN. 



329 



swords of the samurai into the " girded sword of great Japan ; " the 
valour and skill wasted during centuries of internal contention became 
concentrated in defending it against the world. 

Among the famous sword-makers of Japan was Masamune, who made 
his wonderful blades in the fourteenth century. These soon became 
weapons of great value, for the possession of Avhich was many a hard- 
fought battle waged. Often as high as a thousand dollars was paid for 




TEA GARDEN, FUKAGAWA. 



a sword of his make, which was then an enormous sum for that country. 
None of his descendants, many of whom followed his calling, ever rivalled 
him in the craft. 

Masamune had a rival, however, if one who lived before him could be 
called such, in Senju-in-Muramasa, whose forge was at Ise. His remarka- 
ble blades commanded dazzling prices, and their admirers equalled those of 
Masamune. At least one bitter siege of war was aroused by a contro- 
versy over the merits of these rival weapons. 

Out of the mist and darkness of that far-away day come legends and 



330 THE FAR EAST. 

romances of Japanese swords that overshadow the glory of Damascus's 
renowned blades, and humiliate the pride of Old Seville. It was claimed 
that a Muramasa sword was powerful enough to hew through a bar of 
solid copper an inch thick, and delicate enough to split a human hair 
floating in the atmosphere. One of its admirers cut in twain, at a single 
stroke, five common blades, without dulling its edge or dimming the lustre 
of its polished surface. On the other hand, it was related on equally good 
authority that a blade of the make of Masamune possessed supernatural 
powers, and that its owner declared that whenever he went into battle it 
would cleave the heads of all who came in its way, without any force on 
his part. In fact, he had only to guide the wonderful instrument, and it 
would mow its way through the enemy, whose heads fell like hailstones 
in a summer tempest. This was, in turn, offset by the accounts of a 
Muramasa weapon which was believed to mirror in its polished surface 
the likeness of him who was to be its next victim, be that its owner or an 
enemy. In this way it bore, one after another, the wraiths of the victims 
it knew during its long career of bloodshed. One great drawback to 
these remarkable weapons was their invariable habit of never resting 
until they had tasted human blood, once they had been drawn. The 
owners, who may have grown incautious in their use, often became their 
victims. 

There is a tradition yet current, of a Muramasa sword that its owner 
was obliged to leave with a pawnbroker, until he could obtain sufficient 
funds to redeem it. This fellow thought to act the part of a gentleman, 
and girding the weapon to his side he strutted about the streets. The 
spectators soon noticed his awkwardness, and began to jeer at him. 
Angered at this, he drew the blade to put his insulters to rout, but so 
clumsily did he handle the weapon that it turned in a great fury and slew 
him. 

Thus the Japanese sword was an object of admiration and dread. 
Made of perfect metal by the most skilled workmen, its bright surface 
the playground of blue streamers of light, running its entire length, or 
the portrait-gallery of the owner's slain, with a chance that his own 
picture might appear among the battle-scarred faces, it was alike his ally 
and his betrayer. If the gleaming blade scintillated with the very ra.ys of 
death, the guard, ornamented with bronze and golden figures of birds, 



JAPAN. 



331 



blossoms, and sea-waves, was an object of even greater beauty. This part 
of the sword contained a rich store of Japanese history and mythological 
secrets. The engravers and decorators were more than mere workers of 
fanciful ornamentation. They were intelligent historians and artists of 
rare gift, who made of the warlike instruments that came from their hand 
the repository of the shifting dramas of the war, religion, romance, and 
social hfe of Japan. 

Little wonder the owner came to love his sword as he loved his own 




JIXRIKISHA. 



child, for it was the symbol of his standing and the defender of his 
honour. Without it he was a person in disgrace, and helpless to save 
himself. Not only was his favourite weapon a prize to him, but its record 
was his family tree. Sword-lore became a part of his education, and he 
could tell not only the maker of his blade, but the date of its making, the 
battles in which it had been an important factor, and how it had been 
borne amid those scenes of carnage. Nor was he the only one who knew 
all this. There were officials whose duty it was to examine the swords of 
the country, and these became so expert that by looking at a few inches 
of the blade tliey could give the name of the maker, the date of its forg- 



332 



THE FAR EAST. 



ing, and all of the important incidents of its checkered career, no matter 
how old or busy it had been. In the government archives each and 
every sword was carefully and minutely described, as the deeds of real 
estate transfer are recorded in this country. By this means, it is easy 
to prove to-day the particulars connected with all of the most prominent 
weapons of the empire. 

Besides these records and oral traditions, the literature of the sword is 
wide and rich in its scope. It figures conspicuously in prose and poetry, 




STREET SCENE, OSAKA. 

in history and fiction. Songs of the sword were the most popular form of 
writing, and many of them have become classics. We cannot better close 
this chapter, than in giving an extract from one of these, translated by 
one ^ who has caught much of the original spirit of martial melody : 

" (Hush, listen, — my soul, my sword!) 
Is lie near, the fox that skulks 

And kills in the dark unseen ? 
Shall we, too, hide and strike 

In the dark a foe unclean ? 



1 Mary Stockton Hunter, in Atlantic Monthly. 



JAPAN. 333 

Brave deeds are done in the day. 

Sun god, give me steel for sight, 
War god, give me arm of steel. 

To avenge the deed of night. 

(His life for life of my lord.) ^ 

" (Hush, listen, — my soul, my sword!) 
Not molten with toil of days 

Was the steel of your fashioning. 
But with the labour of strenuous years, 

And the steel was a living thing. 
Through your eager, thirsting veins 

The red drops hissing ran. 
Pure blood of a fiery soul. 

Proud spirit of a man. 

(His life for life of my lord.) 

" (Hush, listen, — my soul, my sword !) 
You writhe in my grasp, my own, — 

He is near, the fox we snare ! 
You lift your quivering length. 

One moment — one chance — if he dare ! 
The blood that is in you gleams 

Wicked red, with flashes of light, — 
Now, sword, my soul, cleave clean ! 

Revenge is new life, new sight ! 
(His life for life of my lord.) 

" (Hush, listen, — my soul, my sword !) 
Am I, too, wounded to death ? 

What matter ? My foot can spurn 
His body, the fox that skulked. 

That killed in the dark. I earn 
Remembrance for loyal love. 

For vengeance unto death, — 
And this is a glorious way 

For a man to yield his breath. 
(His life for life of my lord.)" 

Public sentiment, after the revolution in 1868, set in against the wear- 
ing of two swords so strongly that on December 7, 1875, Yamagata, the 
Minister of War, issued a memorial to Premier Sanjo, which on the 28th 



334 THE FAR EAST. 

of March, 1876, brought out the followmg pronunciamento : "No indi- 
vidual will henceforth be permitted to wear a sword unless he be in court 
dress, a member of the military forces, or a police officer." This measure, 
first advocated sixteen years before, became a law over the islands, even 
in Satsuma, the home of the sword. 




LAKE VIEW, LOOKING TOWARD THE RESIDENCE, TOKYO. (TSUYAMA GARDEN.) 



CHAPTER XXXIV. 



THE REVENGE OF THE ROIS^INS. 



HISTORY is but the dry bones of ages. The flesh and bloody of 
the skeleton are the stories and traditions that clothe it with 
increasing warmth and beauty as time passes on. Japan is par- 
ticularly happy in this respect, and among the innumerable legendary 
tales of the long era of feudalism the romance of the forty-seven ronins 
is accorded first place. This is to Japan what the Iliad is to Greece. It 
has, in fact, become more closely woven about the hearts of the people 
from its being a true narrative, even to its minor details. An incident 
of modern history, it found its own delineator from among the heroes 
who participated in the daring deeds, and who are considered as demigods 
in the worship of to-day. Their graves are the shrines of long trains of 
pilgrims from all over the empire, and their story, told by several authors, 
has become a classic in dramatic literature. In one version or another 

335 



336 THE FAR EAST. 

the adventures and heroic parts performed by the players are all given 
individually, and are presented on the stage with remarkable fid^ity to 
original action. In a sketch like this, one can only portray the leading 
incidents, which reflect with mirror-like faithfulness the loyalty, untiring 
endeavour, and valorous forgetfulness of self that, in all generations, 
characterised the Japanese people. The term roniiiy or "wave-man," it 
may be well to explain at the outset, means simply a wanderer or vaga- 
bond. The signification of vagabond, however, is not exactly what we 
should give the word, for a man of noble parts may become a ronin. This 
may not be from choice, but for some trivial offence or whim of his mas- 
ter, who dismisses him to seek service with some one else. The ronin 
thus became the knight errant of Japan. There was also a lower order of 
ronins than we have to do with in this romance, but of them we need 
not stop to speak. 

At the beginning of the eighteenth century a new shrine being ready 
to dedicate near Kyoto, it was necessary to send ambassadors to the 
shogun at Yedo with the intelligence, and two young nobles by the names 
of Takumi no Kami and Kamei Sama felt highly honoured with the dis- 
tinction conferred upon them as bearers of this commission. In order to 
appear with credit at the military city it was necessary for them to re- 
ceive instructions from some one qualified to teach them. Accordingly, a 
high official named Kotsuke no Suke was sought. Known as a very 
avaricious man, what were deemed liberal presents were carried to him. 
At first he met both curtly, and they were made to think that they had 
a big task on hand. Then Kamei Sama was advised to double his present, 
when the official was greatly pleased with the result. But his companion, 
failing to take the hint, continued to be ignored by his teacher, who called 
him a churl and dullard. Finally, to show his spite against the other, 
Suke commanded him to tie up his sock-string, which had become loosened. 

Takumi no Kami, a man of remarkable patience and forbearance, had 
not murmured, and now he bent low and did as his tutor requested. 
This meekness angered Kotsuke no Suke, and he derided his pupil for his 
clumsiness, adding : 

" Such awkwardness speaks plainly of your low birth, and it is evident 
that no such peasant as you can ever hope to be conversant with the 
court manners of Yedo." 



JAPAN. 



337 



Laughing at his insulting words, he was about to turn away, when 
Takumi no Kami, who could stand no more, desired him to wait a 
moment. As the Lord Kotsuke turned to see what he could wish, the 
aroused daimio aimed a blow at the head of the official. The court cap 
of Kotsuke saved him from anything worse than a scratch upon his 
forehead. Again Takumi struck at the official, and missed him. The 
frightened Kotsuke now fled, and, as he did so, an officer at the court 
rushed forward and seized the assailant. He was placed in confinement. 




A KAGO. 



After a brief council among the censors he was doomed to hara-kiri, and 
his property confiscated. He proved unfaltering, and died upon his own 
sword. His castle at Ako was taken by the government, leaving his 
family poor, and his retainers nothing to do but to become ronins. Some 
of these eventually connected themselves with other lords, but forty-seven 
of them leagued themselves together under the leadership of Oishi Kura- 
nosuke to avenge the wrong perpetrated upon their lord. The chief of 
this band, that was to become so famous, had been a chosen and trusted 
adviser to the unfortunate daimio, and he vowed that, while his master 
had committed a grievous error in drawing his sword within his tutor's 



338 



THE FAR EAST. 



castle, he had sufficient reason for slaying the official. He was looked 
upon as a wise and a just man, so the others fell in readily with his plan 
of vengeance. 

Every man knew this was no slight task. Kotsuke no Suke expected 
some retaliatory movement against him, and he did not stir without 
being surrounded by soldiers, and in his home he was guarded by faithful 
watchers. The ronins knew that every act of theirs would be watched, 
and the first thing for them to do would be to escape the vigilant spies 




VJEW AT IIOX.MOKU 



set over them by disarming suspicion. Accordingly they separated, each 
man following his own inclination, but instructed to keep his chief 
informed continually as to his whereabouts. Kuranosuke hired a small 
cottage in a idllage near Kyoto, and his whole conduct suddenly under- 
went a change. While before this time he had been an exemplary citizen, 
a kind and dutiful husband and father, he now appeared as a shiftless, ill- 
mannered fellow, who had no high aim in life. It is true, when alone with 
his family his old-time nature showed itself for brief intervals, but those 
who knew him away from home judged that his mind had been unseated 



JAPAN. 339 

by his disappointment at having lost a good station. It was not publicly 
known where the majority of his companions had gone, but a few were 
supposed to have sought the mountains as hinins, a few had entered 
monasteries, while still others had become vagabonds, — wave-men of the 
most dissolute type. The widow of Takumi no Kami went to live in 
Yedo a quiet, secluded life. All this had been a part of the plan of 
Kuranosuke, as specified in the contract drawn up by him, and signed by 
the forty-seven free-lances, each in his own blood. 

The spies of Kotsuke no Suke brought him pleasing tidings of the 
apparent idleness of those whom he had felt reason to dread. Especially 
was the news regarding their leader gratifying. One of them reported 
that he had seen with his own eyes the late councillor to Takumi no Kami 
sleeping off a debauch in the streets of Kyoto among a party of dissolute 
men, himself and companions the objects of jeers and gibes from the 
passers-by, while he slept on in the most utter unconcern. Surely one 
fallen to be such a brute had lost the courage to avenge the death of his 
master, and deserved not to be called samurai ! To show further the 
truth of this, the messenger declared that he had spat in the face of 
the drunkard without arousing any show of resentment, though the mob 
howled with glee over his disgrace. The fears of the suspicious Kotsuke 
no Suke were allayed, so that he dared to venture abroad, though he kept 
about him his guardsmen. His spies were still ordered never to lose sight 
of the ronin chief and his followers. 

So closely was Kuranosuke watched that he was obliged to assume his 
false character at home, and so well did he play his part that his own 
wife was deceived. With tears in her eyes she begged of him to reform, 
trying to show him the dishonour and the misery he was bringing upon 
his family, as well as himself. 

" You said you were doing this to sham the people into the belief that 
you had no idea of avenging the death of your poor master, but it becomes 
unbearable when you carry this unseeming conduct into the heart of your 
home. Surely here, where prying eyes cannot see, you can at least show 
your loved ones that your manhood has not left you entirely." 

He imderstood better than she the astuteness of the spies set to watch 
him, and that even then one was within hearing, and he replied : 

" So you do not like my manner of life ? Methinks it has taken a long. 



340 



THE FAR EAST. 



time to find out it is not congenial to you. If you like it not you 
are no wife of mine, and from the brothel I will get a pretty girl that 
will please me more. At any rate, I am tired of having an old woman 
whimpering about my house. It wdll please me greatly if you will go." 

By this time he had worked himself into a furious passion, so the poor 
woman was sadly frightened, and knew not what to do or say. Upon her 




BRIDGE NEAR IMPERIAL PALACE. 



knees, with hands outstretched to him, she begged that he be merciful to 
her and their children. 

"For twenty years, my honourable lord, have I been your faithful 
wife. I have borne you three children, and have kept my faith with you 
through sorrow and affliction. I do not murmur at our misfortune now, 
only do not forget the obligations we owe each other. To me and our 
children be merciful, I beg of you." 

Her words fell as if on a heart of stone, and, with cruel indifference, he 
replied : 

"It is plain you do not understand me. I can find one who will better 
fill your place. Begone ! and take the children with you, also, lest they 
be in my way." 



JAPAN. 



341 



The distracted woman sought her eldest son, and at her request he 
pleaded with his father, without changing the situation. Unknown to her 
he had joined with his father in the revenge of the ronins. Finally, in 
despair, the outcast wife went away, taking with her two of the children ; 
Chikara, the son mentioned, deciding to remain behind. 

Intelligence of this reaching Kotsuke no Suke, he laughed with the glee 
of a free man. Soon after, he discharged one-half of his company of 
body-guards, reasoning that he had little to fear from the ronins, whose 
chief had fallen into such a low state. Little did he dream that he was 




KARAMON GATE, NIKKO. 

ensnared in the trap set for him by the wary and patient Kuranosuke, 
who continued to lead his abandoned life, though he was in continual 
communication with his faithful followers. At that very time several of 
these were in actual employ of the marked noble, while others, in the 
guise of peddlers and workmen, found access to his castle. In this way 
they obtained a complete plan of his surroundings, the number and loca- 
tion of his rooms, who were his retainers, who of them were courageous 
and who were cowards, the members of his household, and their charac- 
ters. All this was duly reported to the chief, while he watched, waited, 
and played his difficult part. Then throwing off his worry and anxiety,- 



342 THE FAR EAST. 

Kotsiike no Siike gave up his vigilance, believing he had nothing more 
to fear. But among his advisers was one wiser than he, and this man 
proposed a severe test, to make the situation doubly certain. This was 
to send a soldier whom they could trust, to gain the confidence of the 
ronin chief by seeking to become one of such a band of avengers. When 
the desired spy was found, he was properly disguised, and accompanied 
by two others in the role of ronins, he set forth on his errand. 

They found Kuranosuke at an inn of ill-repute, playing blind man's 
buff with a party of girls. Up-stairs, where they could watch the whole 
scene, as by prearranged plans, were two of Kotsuke no Suke's spies. 
The pretended avenger entered the room, and seizing Kuranosuke by the 
arm, demanded : 

'^ Is it thus the wise councillor of Takumi no Kami spends his time in 
foolishness ? I am Yazama Juitaro, and I have with me two friends who 
would fain speak with you alone." 

"Caught!" cried the blinded man, exultantly, seizing upon the new- 
comer's arm. " Here, girl, you must pay a forfeit by drinking a cup of 
sak^." 

" Nay, Kuranosuke," persisted the other, " you do not understand. We 
have come to know when we are to set forth on our errand of vengeance 
for the blood of the innocent. We have a friend here who would fain 
become one of us. I can vouch for his honesty, and so can — " 

" Away, girls ! " broke in the ronin chief, " the game is ended for this 
day. To-morrow I will be with you again. I must sleep now. Will not 
some of you sing my favourite song ? " 

" This is no time for merriment," declared the disguised visitor. " In 
Yedo we are tired of waiting, and want to know when we are to act. I 
have here a faithful fellow, who swears to act true to us and our purpose. 
I will vouch for him with my life." 

" Fool ! " exclaimed Kuranosuke, " for your babbling tongue proves you 
to be such. Who talks of vengeance and merriment in the same breath, 
knowing that death lurks in the path of one, and the weakness which 
leads to the grave in the other ? I did know a bit of verse, but whether 
it be about Yedo or Kamakura I cannot tell. Perhaps some of the gentle- 
men will be kind enough to tell me what we are talking about when I 
have awakened and my head is clearer." 



JAPAN. 343 

Without further words Kuranosuke stretched himself on a mat and 
was soon sound asleep, very much to the chagrin of the interviewers, who 
failed to get anything more from him, and departed in disgust. When 
his father had slept well into the night, Chikara came and awoke him, 
saying : 

" We are losing valuable time. Kotsuke no Suke is about to leave 
Kamakura. We must strike ere he gets away. Here is a packet from 
Lady Takumi no Kami, which will explain much." 

" Go home, and leave me in peace," commanded Kuranosuke, taking the 
package and secreting it in his bosom. Understanding more than he 
showed, Chikara went his way. As soon as he was alone the chief 
thought to read the missive, but he was interrupted by the entrance of 
an old acquaintance from Kamakura, whom he had not met for a twelve- 
month. This man was really one of the spies, who had thus boldly ap- 
proached the watched man in the hope of getting at the contents of the 
letter. He was greeted civilly by Kuranosuke, who trusted no man, but 
treated every one in a frank manner. 

" Well are we met. I think it has been a year since we last .saw each 
other. Some wrinkles have come ; what better time to smooth them 
out ? " Sake was then ordered, and the newcomer drank with the ex-coun- 
cillor, though he did not trust himself to eat of the solid food brought at 
the order of Kuranosuke. 

" I have yet to learn that Takumi no Kami has changed into a devil- 
fish, so eat, good Kudayu. If you prefer, I will order a pullet. Let our 
feast be a merry one, since it has been a year from our parting, and no 
deeper sorrow sets on our stomachs than our hunger." 

Looking askance upon each other at this display of blunted indifference 
upon a matter which should rest closely upon the bosom of the speaker, 
the two spies soon excused themselves and left the place. Kudayu 
proved himself exceedingly crafty, and when he entered the kago which 
was to bear him away, he passed out on the other side, and, placing a big 
rock on his seat to give the appearance of weight, crawled under the 
floor of the veranda, from which vantage he hoped to watch Kuranosuke, 
and, perchance, discover the contents of the suspicious letter. 

His ruse worked so well that the sharp-eyed Kuranosuke was deceived 
by the apparent weight of the kago, and believed both spies had departed, ^ 



344 



THE FAR EAST. 



as the others had. He then began to read the missive, which was rolled 
so long that when he followed its page the end of the sheet dropped down 
throngh a crack in the floor. This enabled the concealed Kndayn to read 
enongh to know that the plot of the ronins was working. He tore oft' as 
mnch of the sheet as he could, to carry away as proof of what he had 
learned, though he dared not leave his retreat 3'et. 

The letter in reality contained nothing of importance beyond what 
Chikara had said, except the fact that Kotsuke no Suke was to depart 



.ft.^^1 


1 ^V!^^^^|UJj^^ 










\ — ^ — ,£ air 


s^ ^^^i 



MODKRN HOU8ES. 



from Kamakura with only a small body-guard. As Chikara had said, it 
was time to act. Neither was there any lack in the preparations. A 
complete plan of Kotsuke no Suke's yashiki, with gate-house and postern, 
barracks and private quarters, everything, even to the private storehouses, 
had been set down. The arms-merchant of Sakai, one Gehei, had pro- 
cured arms, while the ronins themselves, lest their secret should become 
known, had made armour and uniforms for themselves. Two fishing- 
junks had been got in readiness to start at a moment's warning by the 
band of conspirators. 

While Kuranosuke had been readinsj the missive, another actor who was 



JAPAN. 



345 



to play a small but an important })art in the drama was on the balcony 
overhead. She was one of the girls who had been playing blindman's 
buff with the chief, and she was now engaged in dressing her hair 1 



)v a 



small hand-glass. This mirror chancing to reflect, through an oiuMiing in 
the floor, the long roll of paper in the hands of Kuranosuke, lun* woman's 
curiosity was aroused to read the message, when she was horrifled to dis- 
cover the plot on foot. But, as she read on down the sheet, the glass re- 




i.M I r ^1 -> \ \ ii 



•INK, TOKYO. 



fleeted another object which excited her. This was the figure of the 
concealed spy under the veranda. She saw him tear off a portion of the 
paper, for it was now broad daylight. She started at once for Kuranosuke, 
to find her brother in the act of joining him. She told her story to him 
in a whisper, when he said : 

" You will lose your life by this, girl." 

" I am willing to make that sacrifice if it will help our friend in his 
brave work," she replied, and Kuranosuke, who had overheard all, replied : 



346 THE FAR EAST. 

" Fear not, maid/' and rolling up the letter until he came to the torn 
end, which was proof of her faith to him, he added aloud : 

" But yon skulking wretch shall die this hour." 

Finding that he had been discovered, Kudayu tried to escape, but 
assisted by the girl's brother, Kuranosuke effected his capture, and, 
securely tied and gagged, the unfortunate man was consigned to the 
river. Message was sent to all of the scattered ronins that the time 
to act had come at last, and that they should meet at a feast in Yedo on 
a certain night. Kuranosuke quietly left Kyoto, and was on hand to take a 
seat at the head of the banquet board spread for the wildest feast ever 
given in Yedo. Not one of the forty-seven ronins was missing, every 
man of them easily distinguished by a coat with a back of bats' wings, 
and over the sake was pledged anew the vow made a year before. It 
was agreed that the sole object of the mission in hand was to obtain 
the head of the doomed man. No other life was to be taken that could be 
spared. Two attacks were to be made as near together as possible, one to 
be led. by the chief and the otlier by his son, Chikara, though he was but 
a boy of sixteen. The moment any one of the band should find Kotsuke 
no Suke, he was to cut off his head, if possible, and then whistle, in order 
that his companions might know the object of the raid had been accom- 
plished, and might hasten to their fortunate comrade. The head was then 
to be borne to the tomb of their beloved master, and, this done, they 
were to report in a body to the government, to await their fate for the 
misdemeanour. 

A few hours later, at the dead of the midwinter night, with a heavy 
mantle of snow covering the sacred city, the two junks carrying the 
ronins and their war-weapons anchored off the shore of Kamakura. 
The party then divided into two divisions, as previously agreed upon, 
one party under Chikara, to scale the wall by the front entrance, and 
the other, led by his father, to force an entrance at the water-gate. The 
last being considered the easier place to effect an entrance, was to be 
attempted first, and upon a signal from Kuranosuke, Chikara's band 
was to begin its attack. 

Chikara and his followers had to wait so long for the signal to begin 
their work that they grew impatient, and two of them, by the means of a 
rope ladder, climbed the roof of a porch and let themselves down into the 



IVhispering 



JAPAN. 



347 



court. Quiet reigned about the place, and surprising the guard they 
bound them hands and feet. The twain then made the beat of the 
guardsmen, giving the customary signal at regular intervals with the 
clappers used for that purpose, until the whistle from Kuranosuke told 
them the water-gate had been forced. This couple of ronins now broke 
with a hammer the stout wooden bolt of the great gate, when they were 
quickly joined by their companions. Then the cry of " Amagawa ! " rang 




LAKE VIEW IN THE TSUYAMA GARDEN. 



clearly on the stormy night, awakening the sleeping inhabitants to the 
realisation that an enemy had entered within the fortifications. Kurano- 
suke immediately despatched a messenger to the people, saying : 

" Fear not, good people, for it is not burglars nor murderers who have 
entered here to do harm. We are those who were once honourable re- 
tainers of Asano Takumi no Kami, now ronins, and we are about to 
break into the house of Kotsuke no Suke, that we may avenge the death 
of our master." 

The people had begun to swarm upon the roofs of the neighbouring 



348 



THE FAR EAST. 



houses, with lanterns and torches, but, upon learning the true situation, 
so little respect and fellowship did they have for the doomed noble that 
not one offered to lift a hand in his defence. Kuranosuke had issued his 
order sitting on a stool before the house of their intended victim, and 
his followers, uniting in one body at this time, a dash was made to capture 
their victim. At the entrance to the dwelling of Kotsuke no Suke, they 




IX A GENTLEMAN S GARDEN, FUKAGAWA. 



were met by three of his valiant retainers, when they hesitated about 
doing them harm. 

" How is this ? " demanded Kuranosuke. " Are you to be stopped by 
three men, when you have all sworn vengeance on the head of him who 
rests within ? You are cowards not worth the waste of time. Stand aside, 
and let Chikara, the boy, attack them, and die if his strength be not equal 
to the task of overpowering them." 

Chikara needed no second bidding to do this, and he quickly engaged 
one of the defenders in hand-to-hand combat, while a couple of his 
companions opened battle with the others. The boy soon found himself 



JAPAN. 349 

hard-pressed by the stalwart man-soldier, and he was obliged to retreat 
backward into the garden, where he inadvertently fell into a pond. No 
assistance was offered him, but the brave boy needed no aid. Fancying 
that he had finished him, as he saw him fall, the tall soldier turned to 
go to the assistance of his comrades, when Chikara sprang up and ended 
his career then and there. The other two defenders of the noble having 
been despatched by this time, the whole party of ronins, headed by 
Chikara, entered the dwelling. Their search for the daimio was pro- 
longed, until they had dragged him forth from a corner where charcoal 
was stored. His face and dress black with coal-dust, the cringing noble 
was dragged through the snow into the presence of Kuranosuke, who 
politely offered him the opportunity to die the honourable death of hara- 
kiri. Presenting a most sorry-looking appearance, the cowardly Kotsuke 
no Suke finally pretended to accept the only alternative offered him, and 
raised his short sword in a feint at his own body. Instead of striking 
at himself, he sprang at Kuranosuke with all the force at his command. 
The latter defended himself from the blow, and, felling the wretch at his 
feet, cried out : 

" Take him, men ! he deserves no better fate than to be hacked to 
pieces by your swords." 

Thereupon the ronins gave expression to the greatest joy, as they slew 
the unhappy daimio, saying in concert : 

" Oh, blest occasion ! It is for this hour we have waited, leaving 
parents, wives, children, to live as outcasts, that we might reap this 
harvest of just vengeance. Were it ovir fortune to see the icdonge ^ bloom, 
never could we hope to find such favour as this." 

The ronins now severed the head of the dead daimio, and, seeing 
that the fires were all extinguished, so there might be no conflagration, 
and carrying their ghastly prize, marched joyously out of the gate and 
along the road toward Takanawa, a suburb of Yedo, where stood the 
tomb of their dead master. It was daylight as they started on their 
journey, and the story of their night's exploit having been already spread 
abroad, they were greeted by curious and often friendly crowds, many 
of whom warned them that the father-in-law of Kotsuke no Suke was 

1 A plant resembling the fig, whose flowers are hidden within the fruit, and which, according to 
common belief, blooms only once in three thousand years. 



350 



THE FAR EAST. 



following in pursuit with an army of retainers. But this pursuit was not 
made with sufficient vigour to overtake them, notwithstanding that they 
stopped at the home of a prince, at his invitation, and took breakfast with 
him. They were now received everywhere with applause, and their deed 
was praised universally. 

Upon reaching the front gate of the tomb of Takumi no Kami, it w^as 
opened by the abbot of the monastery himself, who invited them to enter. 




STEAMING TEA LEAF. 



Washing the head of Kotsuke no Suke in a spring, they laid it carefully 
before the door, and, asking the priest to read prayers, they burned 
incense, Kuranosuke taking his turn first, Chikara next, and the others, 
one by one, until the last ronin had repeated the ceremonial. Kura- 
nosuke then gave all the money they had to the abbot, saying : 

" With this give our poor bodies proper burial, and let prayers be 
devoted to our souls, when we forty-seven have committed hara-kiri." 

Immediately after, they gave themselves up to the proper authorities, 



JAPAN. 



351 



nd while public sentiment looked with indulgence upon their conduct, 

^ could not be otherwise than that they should be condemned to die, 

- tueir own hand if they chose. When this last act had been performed 

ith a bravery in keeping with their whole career, and the object of the 

court gained, the valiant ronins were buried by the side of the tomb of 

their master. Their prowess w^as immediately sung far and wide, and 

many came to pray at their graves. Among these was the Satsuma 




TEA-HOUSE GARDENS, OJI. 



man, who threw himself prostrate on the mound of Kuranosuke, saying : 
" Little did I dream you were planning to avenge the death of your 
master when I saw you drunk in the street at Kyoto, or that it was 
a part of your plan. I believed you false to the memory of your lord, 
and so I trod on you in contempt, and spat in your face, while the mob 
hooted you. I have now come to beg pardon for the insult, and to atone 
for the offence," and, with these words, he performed hara-kiri, and his 
grave, out of respect to his repentance, was made beside the forty-seven 
famous ronins. 



352 



THE FAR EAST. 



This romance of the revenge of the ronins is one of the best exan^nles 
of Japanese heroism and fine sense of lionour. We see in their entire 
action no base thought of wrong to others, only revenge for the uncalled- 
for death of their beloved master, — a very calm revenge, tempered with 
the spirit of heroic justice. A testimony to this spirit is the high estima- 
tion in which this band of martyrs is held by the people. Even the spot 
selected for their tomb is one of great beauty, and is kept in perpetual 



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SMALL TEA-HOUSE GARDEN, NEGISHI. 



order by voluntary offerings. A grove of old trees surrounds the temple, 
while a little to one side of the great court stands a chapel dedicated to 
the memory of the brave band. Witliin this chapel are enshrined the 
images, carved from wood, of Kuranosuke and his immortal followers, 
the group surmounted by a gilded statue of Gwannon, the goddess of 
mercy. Of the forty-seven many are represented as old men with gray 
heads, some are in the prime of life, and yet others, noticeably among 
these Chikara, are merely boys, but with expressions on their counte- 
nances showing great firmness and spirit. Near by is the little spring 



JAPAN. 353 

of water, a placard bearing this notice : " This is the well where the head 
was washed ; do not wash your hands or feet here." Higher up is the 
famous cemetery, with its forty-eight graves, — the last being that of the 
Satsuma man, — surrounded by an atmosphere of peaceful repose and 
brooded over by the noble old trees. Just beyond rises the monument of 
him for whom these heroes sacrificed their all. There are many memen- 
toes of the band, — books, pictures, medals, scraps, and collections of old 
metal and wood, with pieces of chain armour, — bearing silent testimony 
to their deed. Among all this litter of relics, where are to be seen even 
the tattered garments of the ronins, crests, and badges, sword-handles, 
spear-heads, and a stout knife red with blood-rust, is a document yellow 
with age, and worn at the folds. This is the plan of the house of Kotsuke 
no Suke, to obtain which Chikara married a daughter of the builder who 
designed it. 

Speaking of this youthful hero of the band, it is related that at the 
time of the hara-kiri the ronins were separated into four parties, and 
thus he was not with his father in that last trying ordeal. But it was a 
part of all such executions that the victims should receive the most con- 
siderate treatment. The ronins were sentenced in the palace of the 
nobleman, Matsudaira Oki no Kami, and he took leave of them one by one. 
When he came to Oishi Chikara, seeing his youth and innocence, he asked 
kindly if he had no message to send to his mother. The brave boy stood 
with bowed head for some time, and then looking calmly up he replied 
that his father had taught him how to die as fitted his station. That if 
he faltered now his hatred would follow him beyond the grave, and that 
the death awaiting him was the choice of his heart. Then he spoke of 
his mother, saying : 

" She told me when we parted at Kyoto, and I had decided to remain 
with father, that our parting would be long, and she told me not to 
weaken when I thought of her. Since I then parted with her for long, I 
have no message to send her." Strong men present were not ashamed 
of their tears as they listened to the last words of the heroic youth. Our 
account of the days of Japanese feudalism fittingly closes here. 




CHERRY BLUFF, YOKOHAMA. 



CHAPTER XXXV. 



THE SOUL OF JAPAN. 



JUDEA stands as a marked example of the refining influence of 
religious lif« ; Greece wears the crown of immortal art ; Rome laid 
upon the fluctuating surface of society the element of law. Thus 
the three, each a representative of a distinctive principle, form a grand 
trio in the history of the world. Japan, alone, stands for all of these, 
with the added grace of mingling with modern heroism ancient chivalry. 
Loyalty is the flower that blooms perpetually on the Parnassus of national 
enthusiasm. The American boasts of his patriotism, but he knows little 
of that divine spark as it has burned in the heart of the Japanese for 
nearly three thousand years. Patriotism in Japan is a passion and a 
worship, where a shrine marks every scene of human sacrifice, and where 
Nature becomes a divinity to idolise. We of this practical Western world 
are not able to realise all this, nor can we do so until we have torn aside 
the veil which obscures our vision, and we look upon the picture as we 

354 



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JAPAN. 355 

would look upon the romance that we delight to style the days of chivalry. 
We have no farther to look into space than the isle of Dai Nippon, and 
only to turn back to yesterday to find this era of courtly manners and 
divine heroism that seems to belong only to the shadowy races of a misty 
bygone. 

In the light of yesterday's setting sun, the picture is before us of " a 
handsome youth with the sinister, splendid gaze of a falcon, in full 
magnificence of feudal war-costume. One hand bears the tasselled signal- 
wand of a leader of armies ; the other rests on the marvellous hilt of his 
sword. His helmet is a blazing miracle; the steel upon his breast and 
shoulders was wrought by armourers whose names are famed in all the 
museums of the West. The cords of his war-coat are golden, and a 
wondrous garment of heavy silk, all embroidered with billowings and 
dragonings of gold, flows from his mailed waist to his feet like a robe 
of fire. How the man flames in his steel and silk and gold like some 
iridescent beetle, — but a war-beetle, all horns and mandibles and menace, 
despite its dazzlings." ^ 

It was under this same sun of yesterday " that two millions of such 
panoplied warriors, trained from birth for the battle-field, inured to every 
hardship, and fearless of naught here or hereafter, save dishonour, guarded 
the battlements of picturesque castles throughout the length and breadth 
of the empire. It was only yesterday that through the silent streets of 
towns and cities vast daimios' trains passed on their way to Yedo, the law 
requiring their residence in that city for six months each year being as 
rigid as that which closed, while they were passing, every door and 
window on^ their line of march, that no vulgar eye might gaze upon 
them." 2 

Year by year, for over two centuries, was this repeated, the description 
given by the historian of that day, Kampffer, portraying as vividly the 
scene to living witness as to him whose shade long since joined that of 
his fathers: 

" Very curious, and worthy of admiration, is the sight of the powerful 
train of a noted noble, the pike-bearers clad in black silk, marching in an 
elegant order, with a decent, becoming gravity, and keeping so profound a 
silence that not the least noise is to be heard, save what must necessarily 

1 Hearn. 2 Knapp. 



356 



THE FAR EAST. 



arise from the motion and rustling of their habits, and the trampling of 
the horses and men. Numerous troops of forerunners, harbingers, clerks, 
cooks, and other inferior officers, begin the march, these being to provide 
the lodgings, victuals, and other necessary things for the entertainment of 
the prince, their master, and his court. They are followed by the prince's 
heavy baggage, packed up either in small trunks, and carried upon horses, 
each with a banner, bearing the coat of arms and name of the possessor ; 




CASCADE IN A NIKKO LANDSCAPE GARDEN. 



or else in large chests of red-lacquered leather, again with the possessor's 
coat of arms, and carried upon men's shoulders, with a multitude of in- 
spectors to look after them. Great numbers of small retinues follow, 
with pikes, simitars, bows and arrows, umbrellas, palanquins, led horses, 
and other marks of grandeur suitable to the birth, quality, and office of 
the noble. . . . The prince's own numerous train, marching in admirable 
and curious order, and divided into several troops, each headed by a 
proper commanding officer. . . . Five or six, and sometimes more, por- 
ters, richly clad, walking one by one, and carrying fassanbacks, lacquered 



JAPAN. 357 

chests, and japanned neat trunks and baskets upon their shoulders, 
wherein are kept the gowns, clothes, wearing-apparel, and other neces- 
saries for the daily use of the prince ; each porter attended by two 
footmen, who take up their charge by turns. Ten more followers, walk- 
ing again one by one, and carrying rich simitars, pikes of state, firearms, 
and other weapons in lacquered cases, as also quivers with bows and 
arrows." Others, bearers of pikes of state and ensigns of the noble's rank, 
follow, marching one by one, and then, "a gentleman carrying the 
prince's hat, which he wears to shelter himself from the heat of the sun, 
and which is covered with black velvet. He is likewise attended by two 
footmen. A gentleman carrying the prince's sombrero or umbrella, which 
is covered in like manner with black velvet. He is attended likewise 
by two footmen. Some more fassanbacks and varnished trunks, covered 
with varnished leather, with the prince's coat of arms upon them, each 
with two men to take care of it. Sixteen, more or less, of the prince's 
pages, and gentlemen of his bedchamber, richly clad, and walking two 
and two before his norimon. They are taken out from among the first 
quality of his court. The prince himself, sitting in a stately norimon, or 
palanquin, carried by six or eight. men, clad in rich liveries, with several 
others walking at the norimon' s side, to take it up by turns. Two or 
three gentlemen of the prince's bedchamber walk at the norimon's side, to 
give him what he wants and asks for, and to assist and support him in 
going in or out of the norimon. Two or three horses of state follow, their 
saddles covered with black. One of these horses carries a large elbow- 
chair, which is sometimes covered with black velvet, and placed on a 
norikago of the same stuff. These horses are attended each by several 
grooms and footmen in liveries, and some are led by the prince's own 
pages. Then follow two pike-bearers, followed in turn by ten more peo- 
ple carrying each two baskets of a monstrous size, fixed to the end of a 
pole, which they lay on their shoulders in such a^ manner that a basket 
hangs down before and another behind them. These baskets are more for 
state than for use. Sometimes some fassanback-bearers walk among them 
to increase the troop. In this order marches the prince's own train, 
which is followed by six or twelve led horses with their leaders, grooms, 
and footmen, all in liveries, a multitude of the prince's domestics, and 
other officers of his court, with their own very numerous trains and 



358 



THE FAR EAST. 



attendants, pike-bearers, fassanback-bearers, and footmen in liveries. 
Some of these are carried in cangos, and the whole troop is headed by 
the prince's high steward, carried in a norimon. If one of the prince's 
sons accompanies his father in the journey to the court, he follows with 
his own train, immediately after his father's norimon. The pages, pike- 
bearers, umbrella and hat bearers, fassanback or chest bearers, and all 
the footmen in liveries, affect a strange mimic march or dance, when they 




SILKWORM CULTURE. 



pass through a remarkable town or borough, or by the train of another 
prince or lord. Every step they make they draw up one foot quite to 
their back, in the meantime stretching out the arm on the opposite side as 
far as they can^ and putting themselves in such a posture, as if they had 
a mind to swim through the air." 

In the crimsoning dawn of this morning the sight of this pomp and 
display vanished, and in the light of the new-born day we gaze on a 
scene where these people have laid at the feet of their emperor their 



JAPAN. 



359 



feudal rights and possessions, have relinquished all save the virtue of 
chivalry, and have entered upon the age of Progressive Japan as gladly 
and unfalteringly as their fathers' fathers entered upon the triumphs of 
feudalism. 

" Feudal Japan, in kimono and hakama, two-edged sword, Chinese 
lettered, with its wealth of art and legend and its happy ignorance, 
protected from the outer world as by a thick and thorny hedge, by the 




LAKE AND ISLAND SCENERY, OKAYAMA. 



Tokugawa policy of non-intercourse, lives still in the memories of many 
who witnessed all the changes that culminated in the great revolution of 
1868. They remember well the mediaeval customs then in force. Each 
day, awakened by the noise of universal clapping of hands, — the entire 
population of the city greeting the morning sun, — one rises to an early 
breakfast of tea and salt prunes, intended more as a sort of sacrament to 
purify the soul than as food to nourish the body. After the daily bath 
and worship at the household shrine of Buddha comes a more substantial 
meal of bean soup, boiled rice, and pickled radishes ; and then the walk ta 



360 THE FAR EAST. 

school (for the child) through the fields and gardens of the walled samurai 
quarter, a belt of cultivated ground and scattered dwellings drawn close 
about the castle, and itself enclosed on all sides by the multitudinous roofs 
of the city. Each house stood in its own rice-fields and vegetable gardens, 
irrigated by channels drawn from the river, which here came out to the 
light after a subterranean course through the lower town. The stream 
circled through the castle moat, gay in summer with the huge pink 
blossoms of the lotus, and passed out again in the darkness, running 
under crowded streets and close-packed houses. The citizens were re- 
quired to show their wooden pass-tickets at the gates before they were 
permitted to enter the castle precincts. 

" At school we were taught to read and write Chinese as well as Jap- 
anese ; and on cold winter nights, in a big annex to the school building 
we practised fencing with bamboo swords and wooden spears, and also 
wrestling in the Japanese manner, calculated to give strength and supple- 
ness to every portion of the body. In summer we had games of polo, 
and were taught to shoot with bow and arrow from horseback. In fact, 
we were trained as though we were still in the Middle Ages." 

Here even the heroism of those who went to the Holy Wars was out- 
done, for during the Crusades there were many too selfish or too timid 
to mingle in the maddening battle. In Japan, it is safe to say every man, 
woman, and child performed a part. The soldier who fell by the wayside, 
overcome by the fatigue of the forced marches, just at the moment his 
comrades were about to storm the breastworks of the enemy, killed him- 
self to wipe out the stain of his fancied disgrace. Another rose from a 
bed of sickness to find that his companions had marched to the front 
without him. To assure the honour of his good name, he, too, committed 
hara-kiri. A still more striking illustration of this spirit is portrayed by 
the suicide of a young and beautiful girl, with the brightest of prospects 
before her, upon learning that the emperor was grieving over the attack 
of a Japanese fanatic upon the Tsarwitz at Otsu. After first imploring 
him to cease his sorrowing, since she had given her life, however un- 
worthy, in expiation of the evil deed, she killed herself. 

A more realistic representation of the spirit of Satsuma, which still 
courses in the veins of chivalrous Japan, is the story of Narabara, the 
patriot. Among those who were instrumental in reinstating the imperial 



JAPAN. 



361 



heir was Shimadzu, a noble of Satsuma. He was greatly benefited in his 
undertaking by a large number of ronins, who lent their assistance to 
him in the misguided belief that he would not stop until he had driven 
the foreigners from the land. Unable to escape himself from this over- 
zealous band, Shimadzu finally resorted to a most bold movement. Select- 
ing from among his most valiant followers eight skilful swordsmen, he 
delegated them to meet the obstinate ronins, and convince them of the 
error of their ways. Nothing more was said, for it was not needed. 





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There was not a nobleman in Satsuma who could not depend upon such 
a body of his retainers as this chosen to confer with the reckless wave- 
men. 

Narabara, the chief of this party, called his followers about him, and, 
after noting the fact that only expert swordsmen had been named for 
the important errand, warned his companions that the ronins Avere first 
to be shown the error of their way by soft argument, and that only as 
a final resort were they to depend upon their arms. In this emergency 
each man was expected to do his duty, an injunction which Narabara was 



362 THE FAR EAST, 

careful not to mention, knowing well the mettle of his band. Then word 
was sent to the ronins to meet with them at a certain tea-house to discuss 
the affairs of the day. Elated over what thej were fain to consider a 
propitious indication, the ronins gathered at the place of rendezvous to 
a large number. Prompted to think that this movement portended the 
overthrow of the foreigners, man}' others joined them. 

Narabara and his little band found the wave-men in the midst of a wild 
carousal, which boded little hope for their plan. But, without losing heart, 
the leaders of the ronins were called together in a small apartment away 
from their men. Here the eight retainers of Shimadzu used such argu- 
ments as their fertile minds suggested to show the others the mistake 
they were making, and tried to show them how useless it would be to 
engage in such a quarrel as they desired. Two hours and over were given 
to this discussion, until it was found to be in vain to convince the ronins 
of their error. If Shimadzu would not lead them, they would fight in 
their own way, having first shown the noble himself the folly of his weak- 
ness. They w^ere the more bold to say this on account of the many from 
Satsuma who were enlisting under their banner. " Shimadzu, forsooth ! 
his recent successes have robbed him of his early valour. Like the bird 
that fluttered in its native bush, he has grown timid with his years." 

Seeing the hopelessness of further argument, Narabara sprang to his 
feet, and, assuming a dramatic attitude, exclaimed : 

" Such talk is treason ! Shimadzu' s heart is as pure and unchanging 
as Fuji's peerless self. The day is over when the foreigner can be thus 
dealt with, as if he were a boy. Strike as you would strike, and darkness 
will speedily follow the flash of thy sword." 

With these words, brave Narabara struck down with his weapon the 
paper lanterns that hung from the wall nearest him. His comrades, look- 
ing to this as a signal for them to act, flung the other lanterns to the 
ground and trampled upon them, when utter darkness 23re vailed. The 
following stirring scene is faithfully described by Mr. E. H. House : 

" The swords of all were instantly drawn. The Satsuma leader darted 
to his corner, proclaiming his name and inviting attacks by loud cries. 
His seven associates fell on their knees, and, in rigid silence, dealt fatal 
blows upon all that came within reach of their weapons. The ronins 
above, warned by the clamour of their chiefs, struggled to descend to their 




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JAPAN. 



363 



aid, but the ladders of communication had been removed. A few sprang 
from the windows, and mingled blindly and ine:ffectively in the obscure 
affray. In less than five minutes from the time that the signal was given, 
the swords of the Satsuma men passed through the air without resistance. 
Narabara called to his followers by name, and all but one replied. A light 
was struck, and its first rays revealed the bodies of eleven ronins, and one 
of Shimadzu's messengers, stretched lifeless upon the floor. 




COUNTRY HOUSE, YOKOHAMA. 



" But the end of this extraordinary encounter had not yet come. The 
scene that followed, though imattended by desperate strife and bloodshed, 
was even more startlingly dramatic. Yielding suddenly to an inspiration 
that could have had no prevision in his sober calculations, Narabara, with- 
out waiting to apprise his companions of his intentions, cast away his 
sword, threw off his outer garment to show that he was now defenceless, 
and, clambering up to the apartment above, flung himself, half naked, 
among the amazed and excited ronins, and fell upon his hands and knees 



364 



THE FAR EAST. 



with a salutation that was at the same time a gesture of appeal for mo- 
mentary forbearance. Before they could recover from their surprise, he 
had rapidly related the whole story of what had occurred below, and 
begged to be heard in justification. The nearest of those who heard 
his words sought to destroy him without ceremony, but a young man 
from Satsuma, who had lately joined the troop, abruptly confronted them, 
and, placing himself defiantly before the jDrostrate body, proclaimed that 
he would protect the unarmed suppliant with his own life until he should 




GARDEN LAKE WITH CENTRAL ISLAND. 



obtain a hearing. In moments of critical suspense like this, a sudden 
demonstration of superior boldness is sure to carry all before it. Those 
who had hastened to avenge their leaders now instinctively yielded, and 
signified their willingness to listen. Narabara at once declared that he 
did not mean to plead for himself, and that if, after having received his 
explanation, they were still determined to pursue their course, his body 
was at their disposal. He then hastily repeated the arguments he had 
used below, and said that, although he had failed to convince the chiefs, 
who were prepared with a regular and carefully contrived plan, his repre- 
sentations should surely have weight with the subordinates, who, left in 



JAPAN. 



365 



ignorance of how to proceed, without commanders of experience or tried 
ability, and thrown into hopeless confusion at the moment when decision 
and unanimity were most needed, could not contend against the forces 
which Shimadzu would be able to array against them. As to what he 
had done himself, every Japanese samurai knew that it was simply his 
duty, and the men of Satsuma, above all, would applaud, rather than 
condemn, him for the fidelity and thoroughness with which he had ful- 




JIKWAN CASCADE, NIKKO. 



filled his mission. An appeal of this kind, made under circumstances that 
attested the fearlessness and faith of the speaker, and addressed to an 
audience composed of soldiers, who, whatever their other errors, had been 
trained to respect courage and devotion as the highest of human virtues, 
could not be ineffective. It was, in fact, triumphant. In admiration of 
his gallantry, Narabara was suffered to go free. In acknowledgment 
of the force of his Reasoning, the ronins admitted the feebleness of their 
position under the new state of affairs, and pledged themselves to disperse 
without delay. The ready resolution of Shimadzu, acting through the 



366 THE FAR EAST. 

strong arm of Narabara and his associates, had cut the knot of disaffection 
and mutiny at a single blow." 

This example of chivalrous loyalty, that pulsates with the heroic spirit 
of feudalism, is of such modern occurrence that many of the participants 
are living to-day, and prominent among them the young man who so boldly 
defied the mob is an official in high position. One of the innumerable 
illustrations of youthful devotion to love and duty is that of the young 
son of a samurai, who had become involved in a losing cause, and was 
hunted for his life. A party of pursuers, coming suddenly upon this boy, 
as he stood wondering over the headless body of a stranger who had been 
recently slain near his home, demanded if the man was his father. Know- 
ing his father's peril, anxious to lend such assistance as he could toward 
his escape, and realising the mistake the daimio had made, he resolved to 
profit by it. Thus his reply was to catch up the severed head in his arms, 
and holding it to his breast for a moment, he laid it sacredly down, and 
quickly committed hara-kiri in the presence of the others. Such evidence 
was sufficient to convince them that it was useless for them to look farther 
for the outlawed samurai, who was therefore able to make a successful 
flight. This young hero's memory has been immortalised in the historic 
drama and tales of heroic deeds. 

The high-spirited romance of Yamato Damashii, or the " Soul of 
Japan," throbs in every pulse-beat of its history. Hearn, than whom no 
foreigner is better able to judge, says : " Ask a body of Japanese students 
their dearest wish, and if you have the confidence of them, nine out of ten 
will reply, ' To die for our Majesty, the emperor.' " 

The name of Yamato Damashii designated five provinces crossed by 
the Eastern Sea road, sometimes known as Adzuma, and comprised what 
was popularly considered the most important part of Old Japan. These 
central provinces in more modern history became entitled Kuan-to, but 
in common with others they have, still more recently, given away to pre- 
fectures styled Ken. This region above referred to, while containing the 
richest portion of feudal history, is to-day the finest agricultural district, 
and has the most po23ulous cities in the empire. 



CHAPTER XXXVI. 

NEW JAPAN. 

THIS fidelity to the ruling line we have seen exemplified through the 
rise and fall of several families of nobles, where clan after clan 
succeeded in establishing certain regimes of power, but none of 
whom could, or even dared attempt to usurp the dignity of the imperial 
heir. The ambitious usurper might, and many times did, degrade the 
royal office by keeping weaklings and youths in the position, yet every act 
and utterance was made to appear as if coming from the master in his 
sacred seclusion. To-day it seems a sort of poetic justice that the descend- 
ants of those very feudal lords, whose aim it was to render effeminate 
the imperial line, received the same treatment at the hands of their 
successors, the shoguns, so that the term daimio became known as a 
synonym for fallen greatness. Again we see this undying spirit of devo- 
tion to country illustrated in the grace with which the powerful heads 
of the four ruling clans yielded up their vast estates to the imperial family, 
when at last it came again to the front rank of government. Where, in 
all the memorials of the nations, is to be found a more remarkable 
document than the following, dated March 5, 1869 : 

" Since the heavenly ancestors established the foundations of the 
country, the imperial line has not failed for ten thousand ages. The 
heaven and earth (Japan) are the emperor's. There is no man who is 
not his retainer. ... In ancient time the imperial wisdom ruled all, and 
there was prosperity under heaven. In the Middle Ages the ropes of the 
net were relaxed, so that men, toying with the Great Strength and striving 
for power, crowded upon the emperor and stole his land. . . . Thus it 
was that the emperor wore an empty and vain rank, and, the order of 
things being reversed, looked up to the hakufu (government of the shogun) 
as the dispenser of joy and sorrow. . . . Now the great government has 
been newly restored, and the emperor himself undertakes the direction of 
affairs. This is indeed a rare and mighty event. We have the name 

367 



368 



THE FAR EAST. 



of an imperial government ; we must also have the fact. Our first duty 
is to illustrate our faithfulness and to prove our loyalty. . . . The place 
where we live is the emperor's land, and the food we eat is grown by the 
emperor's men. Let the imperial orders be issued for the altering and 
remodelling the territories of the various clans. . . . Let the civil and 
penal codes and military laws all proceed from the emperor. Let all the 
affairs of the empire, great and small, be referred to him ; and then will 




ARTIFICIAL RIVER SCENERY IX A JAPANESE PARK. 

the empire be able to take its place side by side with the other nations 
of the world. This is now the most urgent duty of the emperor, as it is 
that of his servants and children. Hence it is that we, daring to offer up 
our humble expression of loyalty, upon which we pray that the brilliance 
of the heavenly sun may shine, with fear and reverence bow the head and 
do homage, ready to lay down our lives in proof of our faith." ^ 

This unprecedented act was followed within a month by similar deeds, 
and, in the end, 241 out of the 276 clans voluntarily restored their fiefs, 

1 " History of Japan." Adams, vol. ii. p. 181. 



JAPAN. 



369 



The possessions long since gained by meritorious service and hard fighting 
— the treasures of feudal Japan — were given over to the sovereign of 
the country without the lifting of an arm or the murmuring of a lip. 
Surely no nobler heritage was ever vouchsafed a nation than that won by 
Japan after centuries of trial in the crucible of war. 

Now that the emperor had stepped from behind the ciu^tain of mystery 
which had concealed his line so long, he was found to be of more impor- 




tance than had been anticipated. As a god, he had upheld a very second- 
rate sort of prestige ; as a man, the mortal ruler of an empire, he soon 
proved himself a success. Strong indeed must have been the vitality of 
that race, which could send forth from environments of enervating dis- 
quietude and the hotbed of sensual delights that tend to degrade the human 
powers, one robbed of his fictitious divinity, yet retaining to a remarkable 
degree the true divinity of man. A mere youth at the time, he is described 
at one of the first public appearances, when he went before the Imperial 
College at Tokyo, as dressed " in flowing robes of crimson and white satin, 



370 THE FAR EAST. 

with a black cap or crown, bound by a fillet of fluted gold, with a tall, 
upright plume or stiff ribbon of gold." Only a short time later, he pre- 
sents a striking contrast to this by appearing at the dedication of an 
annex to the college wearing a European costume throughout. But 
this was simply one of the minor changes, if more readily observed than 
many others, from the old to the new, — from feudal to progressive Japan. 

In the month of June, 1872, the emperor, for the first time in twelve 
hundred years, left the imperial palace to make a tour of his domains. 
For the first time the people looked upon their ruler unveiled, and moving 
among them like an ordinary citizen. Everywhere they cheered and 
breathed more easily. Emperor Mutsuhito made a tour of Kyushu, visit- 
ing Nagasaki, Kagashima, and, on his homeward journey, Osaka, Kobe, 
Kyoto, and Nara, received all along the route with wild enthusiasm. He 
ended this glorious expedition on the 16th of August by riding from 
Kyoto to Yokohama by rail, which followed almost identically the route 
of the old Tokaido, over which had moved in the centuries past the long 
trains of ancient Japan. 

The road had not been formally opened, but work had been rushed 
forward upon the line, that the emperor might thus complete his journey 
in a manner most in keeping with its spirit. Two months later, on one 
of the fairest days that the Land of the Sunrise dispenses in that most 
glorious month of the year, October, occurred the event which made 
it a red-letter day in the history of progressive Japan, and marked, in 
a double sense, one of the milestones in its modern journey. On the 
14th, ere its matchless autumnal beauty had been revealed by the lifting 
of the morning veil, and ere old Fuji had donned her crimson cap over 
her locks of silvery purity, an anxious, curious, wondering gathering of 
the common masses began to surround the stone depot at the eastern 
terminus of this route of modern travel. One and all came to look upon 
a scene the like of which none had ever witnessed, and which none under- 
stood. A little later, another element began to be represented among the 
spectators. This contained representatives of feudal wars, early literature, 
art and science, daimios, and samurais, the corps of foreign diplomats, — 
the first in flowing fanciful garbs, the latter in close-fitting dress of a 
golden texture, — Ainu chiefs, bearded and habited in the picturesque 
dress of the north ; these were succeeded by the train of nobles of the im- 



JAPAN. 



371 



perial court, princes, and, last but not least, the emperor. As this proud 
retinue passed under the archway of azaleas and chrysanthemums, the spec- 
tators broke the respectful silence by shouts, not wild and disordered, but 
long, deep, and sincere. At this juncture, the music began. Amid this sub- 
lime scene, the emperor, the 123d in his line, counting direct from the 
Prince of High Heaven, stepped on board the railway-coach. Silence then 
fell on the magnificent scene, as if one and all were spellbound at the act 




TEA LEAF SELECTING. 



to follow, when the signal to start was given. Thereupon was played the 
national hj^mn of Japan, which had been wafted on the breeze of the Far 
East in the palmy days of the Roman Empire, and during the eventful 
reign of Charlemagne ; outliving the glory of these, to witness the rise 
of Britain's " God Save the Queen," and the " Star-Spangled Banner " of 
the great Republic of the West. The strains of this ancient song, which 
blended so perfectly the past with the present, softened the grumbling 
and rumbling of the revolving wheels, that bore the imperial retinue 



372 



THE FAR EAST. 



down the glistening rails to conquests undreamed of in the triumphs of 
feudalism. 

As the train wound on its triumphal way, a cannonade from the foreign 
war-ships lying off Kanagawa announced to the world that Japan had 
taken its place among the nations of modern progress. Then came the 
noblest feature of that proud day. As the emperor came forth from 
the car, to announce in formal terms that Japan had a railway, four of 




ROCK -BORDERED LAKE, NIIGATA. 



his subjects, in the plain garb of merchants, approached the happy monarch 
and delivered an address of congratulation. This was the most happy and 
fitting exercise of the day. At last, within the memory of the day when 
the grand edict had gone forth that the eta was no longer a despised crea- 
ture of the soil, an utterance equalled only by the emancipation proclama- 
tion of a Lincoln or an Alexander, it was proclaimed that the merchant 
had been lifted to the broad plane of the lord. This fact, more than the 
opening of its first railway, proclaimed that Japan had found the true 



JAPAN. 373 

highway of prestige and commercial greatness. From that hour when 
the mikado had deigned to meet, face to face, the merchant, when the 
two extremes had truly met on common ground, Japan found, not only 
a railway, but a new order of commercial interest. In the light of that 
day's achievement, the glory of the Fujiwara and the Ho jo stood out or 
the background of history like a shadow. 

April 3, 1872, one of the most disastrous fires in its overrunning rec- 
ords of conflagrations had swept over Tokyo, laying in ashes five thousand 
houses, hundreds of yashikis and temples, the numerous foreign hotels, 
and many other valuable buildings, and, at this very time, the distressed 
capital was building upon the ruins, not a second camp of militarism, but 
a city of modern forms and ideas. The narrow streets were widened, 
those of the most importance being made ninety feet in width, while 
others were made sixty. In place of the old wooden buildings rose 
substantial structures of brick and stone, while wooden bridges were 
replaced by those of iron and stone. Thus was verified the old saying, 
"It is an ill wind that blows nobody good." 

The same year which witnessed the breaking of the shackles of cen- 
turies of prejudice, saw another step taken in the way of human progress 
and modern civilisation. The Japanese have always been opposed to 
slavery ; the doctrines of their religion — or call it paganism, if you will 
— never held up the human being as a chattel. Thus, when the traffic 
known as the "coolie trade" began on their shores, the government im- 
mediately assumed a firm attitude against it. It had seen Cuina, also 
against its wishes, allow, year after year, men and women to be de- 
coyed from their homes to be taken abroad to Cuba, Peru, and Hawaii, 
where they were sold, as so many cattle, into slavery or to a life of greater 
degradation. But China had not dared to lift its voice in defiance. In 
1872 the Peruvian ship Maria Luz, loaded with coolie " passengers," 
dared to put in at Yokohoma on its trip around the world. Two of the 
unfortunate men escaped by swimming to an English war-ship lying in 
the harbour. Upon listening to their piteous story, the British official 
communicated the situation to the Japanese officers, asking them if they 
intended to countenance such illegal traffic on their shores. Although a 
pagan empire, Japan was not slow to begin inquiries, and, as a result, tlie 
coolies were sent ashore. The Japanese refused to send them on board the 



374 



THE FAR EAST. 



Maria Luz, and instead shipped them back to China. The latter empire 
showed its high appreciation of the daring and courtesy of its neighbour 
by rallying enough to stop the miserable trade on her shores. In this 
way the seizure of coolies came to be abolished, and the barracoons at 
Maca-o fell into disuse. Singularly enough, this glad victory of the powers 
of the Far East, let it be said to the shame of the others, was accom- 
plished in face of the protests, not only of the interested parties, hut of 




AN ARTIFICIAL ROCKERY. 



the remaining foreign consuls, with the exception of the American' and 
British officials, who favoured them in their steadfast purpose. 

A few years before, when the first cargoes of Japanese had been taken 
to Hawaii, really as slaves, and were actually sold at a low sum, the 
officials quickly took the matter in hand, and, as a result, every man was 
redeemed, the government paying his passage home. Since then this 
matter has been regulated by the government, and no subject of the 
emperor goes into another country who does not go as a free man. 



JAPAN. 375 

In 1872, which proves to have been an important period in the history 
of New Japan, Corea became incensed at the attitude the empire had taken 
toward foreigners, and boldly declared that it had become a " suckling of 
barbarians." The peculiar spirit of the Coreans is shown by the following 
message sent to Tokyo in July : 

" Our Corea, if a small country, is yet inhabited by a people who have 
the courage to tell you in writing that the Western barbarians are 
beasts. Having made them your allies, we tell this to your face, that 
you are no better than they. That you may know the manner of light 
in which we look upon this, we wish you might join hands with them, 
and meet us with your great ships-of-war and vast armies. We defy you ! 
The nearest port to Japan of Gorea is Fusan. We will send some of our 
men to clear a space there large enough for a battle-ground, and will 
arrange for a battle with you in a manner that shall not be expensive to 
you. We will listen to no correspondence, nor accept any apologies. Our 
only condition is war — war of extermination for the soldiers of Japan. 
You need not delay to write. It is useless. If you have not the courage 
to invade Corea, after all we have said, then Corea will invade Japan, 
when the da.ys of the empire will be few." 

Surely here was bravado of the most pronounced type, without any 
pretence to discretion ! Although Japan had apparently turned from the 
ways of war .to the paths of finance, the Satsuma spirit still lingered in the 
breasts of many who w^ere ill pleased with the situation. This insult from 
Corea gave this element the long-desired excuse " to break from shackles," 
and war was immediately declared against the peninsula, which, during the 
Tokugawa dynasty, had been a vassal of Japan. 

In the midst of this warlike preparation another affair occurred which 
still further aroused the old spirit of the Japanese. A junl^ was driven 
on the shore of Formosa in a storm, and the crew falling into the power 
of the inhabitants of the island, it was claimed, with very good proof, that 
the men had become food for the cannibals. This coast had long been 
a terror to the trading vessels of all countries, and the predatory chastise- 
ments inflicted on the savages having failed to make any lasting unpres- 
sion, Japan now resolved to seize the country along the shore, to keep 
the wild tribes under subjection. It was also proposed to erect and 
maintain lighthouses along the shore at the most dangerous points. It 



376 



THE FAR EAST. 



was a humane purpose. China, who once had claimed the island as 
belonging to that empire, had not pretended to hold it for years. In 
fact, it had been omitted from their maps for over a century. Thus 
Japan did not consider that she was throwing down a gauntlet of war 
to China in deciding upon her course of action. But to act courteously 
in the matter, she sent an ambassador to the celestial court, who for the 
first time appeared before that august body in the conventional black 
dress coat, pantaloons, and white neck linen of the Occidental world. 




SCENE ON KISO RIVER. 



very much to the amazement of the others. China there claimed no 
interest in eastern Formosa, and gladly granted the Japanese the privi- 
lege of attempting control over the uncivilised inhabitants. While this 
was taking place, the Formosans gave Japan further cause for punishing 
them by seizing a Japanese junk, and maltreating its crew. 

By this time an expedition against the savages had been completed, 
and the troops, under command of the famous Satsuma chief, General 
Saigo, were started on their way to the island. Upon reaching Formosa, 
it was found that the task in hand was no slight one. The island held 
many difficult cliffs to scale, and still worse jungles to penetrate. In the 



JAPAN. 



377 



midst of these dense forests of banyan-trees and brushwood the inhabit- 
ants had built mazes of barricades until it seemed impossible to reach 
those entrenched behind them. But the Japanese set about their task 
with commendable spirit, advancing with as much rapidity as possible into 
the country fairly alive with savage enemies. To the credit of the 
Japanese leader, he ordered his men to avoid mutilating the bodies of 
the slain, and under no circumstances to behead their victims, as the 




A HOT SPRING. 



Formosans were doing. First of all, he sought to find the tribe that had 
been guilty of the atrocities of the year before. 

But no sooner was one dangerous step accomplished, than the Japanese 
found themselves involved in the still deeper intricacies of a wilderness 
that seemed without limit. In their distressing advance they were forced 
to seek encampment on a cliff too barren of earth to afford a growth, and 
where neither food nor water could be obtained. In the midst of this 
trying warfare with an enemy harder to reach than to overcome when 
found, China awoke to a realisation of the purpose of Japan, and sent 
at once two ships to treat with General Saigo, to have him withdraw his 
army. If this was refused, they were to offer to join in the undertaking. 



378 



THE FAR EAST. 



Count Saigo, with true Satsuma spirit, listened to neither proposition, 
simply referring the Chinese commissioners to the government at Tokyo, 
and resumed his fighting. 

Tliis he followed up Avith a vigour which soon overcame the tribe of 
Formosans he had desired to chastise, and the others at once agreed to 
terms of peace. Nor did Japan stop here, but immediately began to carry 
out her plans in full. She set about building roads, opening up the 




NAGASAKI HARBOUR. 



interior of the island, and constructing fortifications and carrying on 
engineering after modern ideas. Japan did this in the interest of the 
world, — of humanity, — without asking or expecting any outside assist- 
ance, or the securing of any direct and immediate gain. But no sooner 
was the work well begun, than the sleeping giant on the continent, encour- 
aged by outsiders, began to assert that Japan had encroached on its 
territory, — that all Japanese in Formosa were intruders. If war with 
an empire ten times her size threatened her, Japan did not lose confidence 
in her ability to hold her own with China. Destined to fight over this 




CHRYSANTHF.MUMS. 



JAPAN. 379 

same ground twenty years later, she did not waver now. She sent one of 
her ablest diplomats, Count Okubo, to Pekin. So well did he plead the 
cause of his government before the Chinese potentates that China finally 
agreed to pay Japan seven hundred thousand dollars for a restoration of 
her doubtful rights to Formosa. So Formosa came into the possession 
of China after Japan had purged it at a cost of five million dollars, and, 
what was far dearer, the lives of a thousand valiant sons, whose graves 
are under the camphor-trees on the slopes of the templed hills of 
Nagasaki. 

The affair with Corea ended more quietly. Japan sent an army under 
Gen. Kuroda Kiyotaka, who skilfully managed to settle matters with- 
out bloodshed, notwithstanding the bluster of the Coreans at the outset. 
Japan's ambassador at Pekin, his position strengthened by this armed 
force in Corean waters, succeeded in obtaining a treaty of peace between 
the two countries on the 27tli of February, 1876. In this way Japan led 
the "hermit nation" out into the light of the world. In 1878 the United 
States followed the suit of Japan, and four years later saluted the flag 
of Corea oE a little fishing-hamlet, which has since become the noted 
seaport of Chemulpo. 

While Japan was carrying on these wars, she was not idle at home. 
The watchword everywhere was progress. The standard of public moral- 
ity was raised, and schools were established. Steps were taken to atone 
for the misdeeds done under mistaken conceptions against Christians in 
the past. The unfortunate victims of 1868 and 1869, who had been 
torn from their homes and families, to be banished to the provinces of 
Echizen and Kaga, were released and restored to their native abodes. 
In our tour of the islands, we have seen something of the harvest being 
reaped from the seed sown during these and the following years of the 
Meeji. 

During Japan's busy time with Formosa, in 1874, Russia acquired 
Saghalien, and established there a penal colony. 



CHAPTER XXXVII. 

MEN OF THE TIMES. 

FROM time to time strong reverses have been marked in the policy 
of Japan toward foreign intercourse. In the middle of the sixteenth 
century, the Japanese were famous far and wide as " lords of the 
sea." Foreigners were then welcomed to their ports with open arms, and 
it seemed not improbable that the people of Dai Nippon would girdle the 
globe with their ships. All this suddenly changed. In less than a cen- 
tury the last bit of Japanese sailcloth had vanished from the open main. 
Every port was closed to other sailors. At home, one who was bold 
enough to hint of alien ideas was sure to invoke upon himself death or 
severe punishment. An attempt even to leave the island empire was 
punishable with beheading. Not a ship was built for over a hundred 
years. 

Foreign writers have ascribed several reasons for this severe seclusion, 
some of them getting far from the truth. It was not because Japan 
despised foreign trade, as small as had been her share in the profits so 
far ; neither was it a desire to avoid association with other races. The 
Japanese were too good scholars to wish to escape the knowledge that 
might come to them from others, even their enemies. A strictly religious 
race, according to the tenets of their belief, the Japanese felt an inherent 
dread of the Christianity that began to sweep over the empire. It was to 
exclude this, to retain inviolate her temples and shrines from the desecra- 
tion of foreigners, that Japan entered upon hermit life. It is well to 
understand this, though a full appreciation of her self-imposed sacrifice 
cannot be understood by another. We get a hint of the situation from 
the fact that the word " foreigner," as it is now used, was then unknown. 
The stranger was termed hateren, equivalent to priest, or padre. The 
common people, in truth many of the nobility, were prone to look 
upon the coming of the Christian propagandists as an act of aggression. 
Foreign intercourse was believed to mean simply a seeking after their 

380 



JAPAN. 



381 



religious rights, a meddling with the sacred prerogatives of the emperor, 
and a taking away of the liberty of the people, who had been favoured 
with the independence of the gods. When we fully understand this, 
we are partially prepared to comprehend the patriotic self-sacrifice the 
Japanese followed, in order to protect themselves, and that divine right 
to worship according to the dictates of their own hearts, from the con- 
tamination of intruders, while saving their country from the vandalism 




VIEW OF MYENO PARK, TOKYO. 



of religious teachers more earnest than broad-minded. Thus it was not 
anti-foreign, but anti-Christian, spirit which closed the gates of Japan 
to the stranger from the Occident. It is true, Christianity opened those 
gates once, but the same gloved hand was the means of closing them later 
on. The explanation is easy to find, and not difficult to understand. 

There was one exception to this exclusion of foreigners, which should 
not be overlooked. The Dutch alone were exempted from this complete 
outlawry. But they were restricted to landing at the small island of- 



382 THE FAR EAST. 

Deshima. Here they were allowed to send annually two ships, for a 
century or more, and were then reduced to only one each year. But from 
this slight favour the Dutch reaped a rich harvest. Owing both to the 
unappreciated value of gold, silver, and copper, and also to an ignorance, 
on the part of the common people, of the worth of foreign goods, the 
traders from the Netherlands are supposed from the beginning of the 
seventeenth to the middle of the nineteenth century, a period of two 
hundred and fifty years, to have brought away from the empire gold to the 
amount of two hundred million dollars. Better would it have been for 
Japan to have closed its last gate against this foreign miser. This privi- 
lege of robbery was retained by rigidly letting alone the religious rights 
of their victims. 

In the regeneration of Japan, as might have been expected, the Satsuma 
element, which was foremost in reinstating the imperial sovereignty, was 
the last to enter into the modern spirit of progression. The education 
of the leaders of this powerful clan was that of the days of feudalism, 
tempered with the animation of revenge over downfalls and humiliations 
laid upon them in the ascendency of the shoguns. Loyalty to the em- 
peror, fidelity to the chiefs, and hatred to foreign "barbarians," were 
the ruling stars of this warlike league. The virtues of the era of Great 
Peace spread not its sunlight, nor the vices of the Dark Age, its shadow, 
over their pathway. 

The ablest man among them, beyond doubt, was Saigo, under favouring 
environments a Nobunaga, or possibly a Hideyoshi, but placed a thousand 
years in advance of his ideas of government. In his proper time, it is 
not too much to say that the ministers of state — ay, the emperor even 
— might have bowed to his iron will, and the sword have held dominion 
everywhere. The age and the altered conditions of affairs were against 
him. He had to content himself with retiring to Kagoshima, and found- 
ing a military school for the representative youths of Satsuma. 

The favourite saying of this clan, and one such as Saigo was careful 
should not be forgotten, was this : " The eagle may be starved, but he can- 
not be made to eat grain." In the light of such an example of stubborn 
persistency, it became the current belief that this modern government, 
with its foreign tendency and leaning away from the sword, was afraid of 
Satsuma. Saigo and his followers would yet rise at the head, and restore 



JAPAN. 



383 



the " good old times." Colour was given this belief by the fact that this 
federation held control of powder-mills, run by improved methods. Under 
a slight covering of artifice, the clan went on consolidating, arming, and 
gathering new strength. The dream of Saigo might have been fulfilled, 
and the prophecy of faint hearts have come true, had not the government 




VIEW OF MATSUSHIMA. 



proved itself more alert and stronger than had been anticipated in treating 
with these rebels. 

Instead of waiting for this discontented clan to prepare fully for open 
combat, the imperial army, recruited hastily and mainly from peasants 
unused to warfare, marched against the tried soldiery of Satsuma, where 
even the women fought, as in the brave days of old. It was the last 
spark from the brand of ancient wars, and the lookers-on held their breath 
in dread for the result. Saigo and his faithful companions, Kirino and 
Murata, both worthy of his trust, at the head of less than four hundred 
warriors, armed only with swords, stood boldly up before twelve thousand 



384 THE FAR EAST. 

of the imperial troops, with their rifles, mortars, and cannon. Only one 
in four of the hardy defenders of the ancient clan survived, and three 
out of one quartette were Saigo, Kirino, Murata. Many died by hara-kiri. 
Saigo was beheaded by a friend, that he might die as befitted a true 
defender of Yamato Damashii. The majority perished in this manner. 
It seemed like a mockery of fate that, in this final struggle, not a soldier 
of the army of the emperor fell. It is very doubtful if another rebel- 
lion of this kind occurs, for what " Saigo could not do, no imitator will 
attempt." It cost Japan ten thousand lives, to say nothing of the suffer- 
ing and the loss of limbs, and fifty millions of dollars, to end at last the 
feud of centuries. 

Among the prominent figures in modern or progressive Japan, and 
directly opposed to the belated Saigo, none deserve a higher place in 
history than Kido, who has been styled respectively " the brain and pen 
of the revolution," "the finest intellect," "the great reformer." He sin- 
cerely believed in the divine right of the emperor to rule ; he was a zeal- 
ous advocate of peace, and opposed the wars against Corea and Formosa. 
He was one of the most ardent supporters of the press, and was the 
founder of several newspapers. To a rare political ability he joined 
the honest enthusiasm of a patriot and a statesman. He did as much 
or more than any other man toward bringing about reforms in taxation 
and economy in the management of the government. In 1875 he caused 
to be convened the House of Elders, which corresponds very closely to 
our Senate, and he brought about an assembly of Ken (districts) governors. 
This was the first real fulfilment of the emperor's promise to establish an 
assembly of legislators. But the only session of this senate was that held 
in 1875. A protracted absence of the emperor from the capital the follow- 
ing year, and the breaking out of the war with the Satsumas soon after 
afforded excuses for not calling the body together. Kido was an inde- 
fatigable worker, and he broke down a strong constitution to maintain 
peace and prosperity for his country. He died at the zenith of his glory, 
when he was never needed more to help carry his government over the 
shallows of a civil war, which came soon after his death at Kyoto, May 
27, 1877. 

Kido's political rival was Okubo, who believed as sincerely in the im- 
portation of foreign ideas as he did in the higher possibilities of modern 



JAPAN. 



385 



Japan, while Saigo, as has been shown, represented the military spirit 
and genius of Old Japan, the Dai Nippon of the Fujiwara and lyeyasu. 
The third, but not least, of this great triumvirate met his fate at the hand 
of an assassin, while riding along the avenue leading to the imperial palace 
on the afternoon of May 14, 1878, within a year of the death of his illus- 
trious rivals, Kido and Saigo. Though differing materially in his methods, 
this man was as much a patriot as Kido. His greatest shortcoming, if 




VIEW OF YOKOHAMA HARBOUR. 



overzeal in a cause can be called such, was his expectation to reform his 
country in one lifetime. If there was a man to do that, it was Okubo, 
whose courage of conviction was matched by his swiftness of thought and 
action. He saw and comprehended at a glance what others failed to 
understand after a long time. He never lost an opportunity to act in 
behalf of his people. He saw the situation as no other man of his time 
saw it, and he realised, as even the wise Kido did not, the importance of 
foreign assimilation. In his eagerness to press his country on, he favoured 
a strong government, in which Kido took issue with him. Okubo was 



386 



THE FAR EAST. 



charged with avoiding public discussion, and of encouraging personal gov- 
ernment. His last public utterance was to the effect that High Heaven 
would guard him from harm so long as his work was pleasant in its sight. 
Were his course mistaken, no power could save him. His words went on 
record as a prophecy, when, within twenty-four hours, he lay in silent state 
with the mark of the murderer on his breast. His funeral was the most 
imposing ever witnessed in Tokyo, and his sons were raised to the rank of 




KANASAAVA. 



nobility by the emperor. He has been described as having '' a tall, arrowy 
form, luxuriant side-whiskers, large, expressive eyes, and eager, expectant 
bearing, which gave him the appearance of a European rather than an 
Asiatic." He visited America in 1874, that he might the better inform 
himself in regard to the methods of foreign government. His erect figure, 
piercing black eyes, and handsome countenance, made him conspicuous 
wherever he went. 

Another figure, stalwart in the affairs of the time, who stands out 
among the leaders of the era known as the Meeji, or Great Peace, is that 



IVriting a Letter 



JAPAN. 387 

of Iwakura, a descendant of the Minamoto family. Like Kido and Okubo, 
he had been educated to oppose the system of government originally 
established at Yedo, but had many ideas antagonistic to them, though 
striving for the same grand result. He was born at Kyoto, in 1825, and 
was a personal assistant to the emperor at twenty. At thirty-six he was 
banished on account of his opposition to the marriage of a princess of 
the imperial house to a member of the Tokugawa. But somehow he 
reappeared upon the scene of action at the time of the revolution, fore- 
most among the leaders of the movement. He became an intimate adviser 
to the emperor, which important position he held until his death in 1883, 
at the height of power and honours. To him, perhaps, more than to any 
other man, the young ruler was under obligation for that counsel which 
enabled him to guide so safely the course of the untried government. 
The emperor paid him this compliment : " Under the favour of the gods, 
it is to you we owe the prosperity of the government." This was not 
flattery, but well-deserved truth. Absolutely without fear of the conse- 
quence to himself, this son of noble lineage urged forward by word and 
action the transformation of the old forms into the new. He was cor- 
rectly estimated by the sobriquet bestowed upon him by the masses, 
" the rock-throne." Naturally a man in his position would call upon him- 
self many bitter enemies, and several attempts were made upon his life, 
all of which he escaped, dying of an inherited disease in the prime of life. 
He was buried with profound sorrow. 

This was a period when many of the old school of leaders laid aside 
their cares and responsibilities, which were to be assumed by men from 
the lower walks of life. With the demise of these imperial leaders, the 
old court party collapsed, and successors who had received much of their 
education abroad, among them Ito, Inouye, Mori, and Entimoto, took up 
the reins of government. This tended to bring the emperor nearer to 
his subject, and to lift up the lower classes. 

Foremost among the new representative leaders is Count Ito, the framer 
of Japan's Constitution, which is looked upon with pardonable pride by 
the Japanese as the only document of the kind in the history of nations 
which was not obtained at the price of blood. This statesman and legis- 
lator had a very vivid experience before he won his civil battle, however. 
In his search for outside knowledge, he and another of national reputation, 



388 



THE FAR EAST. 



a second Saigo, were forced to leave tlieir native land as sailors before the 
mast. In the autumn of 1862 they reached England, not only unknown, 
but friendless and penniless. This companion of Count Ito's in that same 
year was one of a little band of faithful men, who were so hard-pressed 
by their enemies as to be obliged to give to the torch the new building 
designed for the British legation in Tokyo. He afterward became Minis- 
ter of Finance. It had been only the year before that Marquis Saigo had 




HAKONE LAKE 



been obliged to defend himself and a few companions, in their anti-foreign 
crusade, at the point of the sword in the second story of a little inn stand- 
ing in a suburb of the capital. Yet another figured prominently in a kill- 
ing affair on the Tokaido, which resulted in the death of a foreigner and 
the bombardment of Kigoshima by a British ship soon after. The term 
" blood and iron " has most appropriately been applied to the stirring times 
that witnessed the passage of the old government, and the men who paved 
the way for New Japan were men of iron will as well as of far-seeing minds. 



JAPAN. 



389 



The spirit underlying the feeling aroused against these liberals was 
illustrated by the attack made on Count Okuma during the revision of 
the treaty with Great Britain in 1889. The count had boldly offered 
terms, which were looked upon with grave suspicion by certain of his 
countrymen. It was known that the lives of the leaders of the party 
were in danger, so the government furnished a body-guard of jinrikisha 
men, but kept them at too great a distance to be of defence to their man. 




FEEDING SILKWORMS. 



Count Okuma, fearless for himself, disliked this course, believing, and 
correctly, that it would serve to draw attention to an official without 
affording him any real protection. He was minister of foreign affairs 
at the time, and returning one afternoon from a Cabinet council, he was 
met by a well-dressed young man just as his carriage was turning into the 
private way leading to his residence. This stranger rushed forward and 
flung a packet toward the vehicle. On the alert for such attacks, the 
coachman whipped up the horse, and the bomb, for such it proved to be. 



390 THE FAR EAST. 

exploded without doing the harm intended. Still, some of the splintered 
carriage struck the count on the knee, inflicting a wound which necessi- 
tated the amputation of the limb above the joint. Immediately after 
making his attack, which he no doubt thought had been successful, the 
assailant cut his throat, thus meting out to himself what was considered 
good Japanese justice. The cause for this act was the willingness on the 
part of Count Okuma to allow foreign judges to remain in Japanese courts 
during the period that Japan was undergoing the ordeal of administering 
laws of which she in all consistency must be largely ignorant. The would- 
be assassin, who was of the poorer class, had been stimulated to the deed 
from reading the accounts of the meetings of the Cabinet in the papers. 
The hopeful tendency of the time was shown by the general disapproval 
accorded the act by the public. 

The prevalence of so many high-sounding titles must not fill the 
reader's mind with visions of ancient nobility, or families of long-stand- 
ing renown. In truth, the wearers of such lordly significations as " mar- 
quis," " count," or " viscount," held a patent that was very modern, and 
in the West would have been simply known as Mr. Ito, Mr. Okuma, and 
so on, through the list of brilliant patriots that arose out of the mysticism 
of the past and laid on the brow of the empire a crown of more modern 
pattern. Yet these gallant men gave no discredit to their titles, but won 
for their country a place among the nations of the earth, and names for 
themselves greater than the mere title of an inherited peerage. 

For nearly a quarter of a century Japan was agitated by the constant 
movement of three branches of advanced thought, all new to the working- 
forces of the country, viz. : the press, the lecture, and the yet greater 
means of agitation, public debate. Finally the emperor yielded to the 
growing demand to fulfil his obligation made in 1868, and on the 12tli of 
October, 1881, he issued his famous proclamation declaring that the par- 
liament long promised should be established, and that in 1890 a constitu- 
tional form of government should be organised. 

A representative man, in a line that led him far away from the legisla- 
tive halls, who was famous at this period, was the artist, Kyosai, whose 
entire life was completely absorbed by his divine genius. At the early 
age of three he was drawing faithful pictures of the frogs that hopped in 
the pools near his home ; at seven he was haunting the lowest quarters of 



JAPAN. 



391 



the city, that he might catch a glimpse of some unusual and distinctive 
feature of life among the lowly ; two years later he was studying in secret 
at home the head of a man, which he had caught from the river as it 
rushed on with its ghastly burden, that he might convey to paper its 
image. The intensity with which he worked over a picture is described 
by an incident of a fire at which he was present when a young man. 
Among the property taken from a shop was a large number of cages of 




JAPANESE JUNK IN TADOTSU BAY. 



birds, which had been on sale. Finding, at last, that he could not save his 
birds, the owner humanely opened their prison doors and let them seek 
their freedom. The frightened creatures arose in a perfect cloud, but, 
instead of seeking safety, flew straight toward the raging flames. The 
red tongues of the conflagration, the dark borders of smoke, and the bright 
and gorgeous plumage of the birds, made a magnificent spectacle ; but to 
Kyosai the many-hued birds made the prettiest part of the uncommon 
sight. In a moment his pencil was flying rapidly over a sheet of paper, 



392 



THE FAR EAST. 



and unmindful of the sparks falling about him, of the increasing heat of 
the fire, and the peril he was incurring, the youthful artist sketched on, 
until his friends rescued him at the very moment when he must have 
perished but for their timely succour. 

It was the leading trait of a Japanese artist not to paint many pictures, 
as the commonness of one's work tended to detract from its value. Kyosai 
was true to this instinct, and his gems of art are not as numerous as his 




HAKOXE WATERFALL. 



admirers would like. It was very seldom that any one could obtain one 
of his drawings, and it is related that advantage of the artist's weakness 
in another direction used to be improved to get a sketch from him. This 
would be done by inviting him to dinner, and over the wine that followed, 
— the artist delighted to humour his taste in this direction, — his host 
would declare that he felt like exhibiting his artistic ability. The material 
would then be ordered. Spreading the huge sheet of white paper on the 
floor, and arranging his brushes and India ink, the impromptu artist would 



JAPAN. 



393 



begin his work. It being nothing unusual for one to do this, Kyosai did 
not seem to realise the net being prepared for him. Thus, as he watched 
the rude efforts of his host, who appeared to be absorbed in his pleasant 
task, he would grow nervous and his usual good nature would receive a 
severe shock. Finally, unable to witness such slight upon his noble call- 
ing longer in silence, he would exclaim, " Stop such bungling ! I will 
teach you what it means to draw." Seizing the brush from the other's 




MITO PARK. 



not unwilling hand, he would quickly produce a sketch that his crafty 
entertainer would retain as a valuable inemento. 

Sometimes the desire to paint would amount to a frenzy, when he would 
seize upon an opportunity to convey to paper some scene of startling char- 
acter, and under circumstances most unfavourable. A lady of high rank 
was once greatly offended by being followed by him, whom she did not 
recognise, into her chamber. Calling for help, she demanded that he be 
punished for his offence. When Kyosai suddenly became aware of the 



394 THE FAR EAST. 

awkward situation he was in, he explained that he had followed her 
simply that he might sketch her obi, which was of a most novel and 
fantastic pattern, while she was running away from him. She was only 
too happy to pay him an enormous amount for his sketch. 

Though he received large sums for his work, he gave it nearly all to the 
poor. He could bear to see no one suffer while he had a crumb to give. 
At one time he was stopping at one of those pretty little wayside inns so 
common in Japan, and called there tea-houses, which was kept by a poor 
widow. On that day she was feeling especially unhappy, having just been 
ordered to give up the house for an old debt. No sooner had she told this 
than the artist began to cover the stainless paper walls with grotesque 
figures and strange images. Alarmed at the disfiguration of her house, 
the frightened woman begged him to stop, and finding her protestations 
useless, she called upon others to take the madman away. But her entire 
demeanour changed at the whispered utterance of the name " Kyosai," 
and her joy knew no bounds as she saw him cover with his matchless 
brush not only walls but ceiling. She realised enough from the sale of 
those walls to pay all her debts and leave her a comfortable sum besides. 

These are but a few of the many stories told of this gifted artist, who 
died recently, rich in his immortality. His art remained his ruling passion 
until the very last. When he was so wasted with disease that he could 
no longer stand alone, he amused himself, as he lay on his couch, by draw- 
ing the shadow of his thin, emaciated figure on the spotless wall. Finish- 
ing this, he bade farewell to his wife in a husky voice, gave direction to 
his picture-mounter in regard to mounting his last picture, and then fell 
asleep with the brush in his hand. 



CHAPTER XXXVIII. 

WAR WITH CHINA. 

THOUGH the long career of Japan had been but a succession of wars, 
she had really never shown to the outside powers anything like a 
proof of her prowess, until the struggle with China at last won for 
her honourable distinction among the nations of the world. The bone of 
contention was Corea. At least the condition of affairs in the peninsula 
led to the crisis. The safety of Japanese in this country called for some 
decided action by the island empire, and feeling that the time had come 
for it to assert its rights in that direction, Japan prepared for the inevi- 
table. But Japan was not unmindful of the treaty existing between herself 
and China, so that the latter country was invited to join in some scheme 
which would redound to the good of all concerned. The Middle Kingdom 
readily agreed to this, and furthermore not to send armed troops into Corea 
without notifying the emperor of such action. In spite of this pledge, 
in fact while she was making it, China raised armed men to send to the 
peninsula. Aware of the desire of the Chinese to outdo them in Corea, 
and to bring the Hermit Nation under their allegiance, the ministry at 
Tokyo informed the other that any further action of this kind would be 
considered unfriendly, and a sufficient cause for declaring war. 

China continued to display her stupidity or wilfulness by ignoring the 
well-meant caution. Nor did she stop here, but one of her men-of-war 
attempted to destroy a Japanese trading- vessel, thus firing the first shot of 
the war. At this time China was sending troops to Corea on a ship bear- 
ing British colours, and commanded by an Englishman. In an engage- 
ment which followed the opening of hostilities, the Japanese vessel Nankva 
poured upon this suspicious transport such a galling fire that the captain 
ran up the flag of distress. The Chinese on board would not heed the offer 
to surrender, and returning the shots of the enemy, tried to escape. But 
the Japanese were too clever for them, and the Chinese were obliged to 
jump into the sea and swim for their lives, while the English gave them- 

395 



396 



THE FAR EAST. 



selves up to the mercy of the victors. Fortunately all of them were saved 
by the Japanese, though it looked as though serious complications might 
arise out of the affair. Japan, however, promptly compensated the suffer- 
ers, and did all that could be done to atone for a matter in which they 
were really not to blame. 

There is no doubt but China, or at least a portion of the empire strong 
enough to foment a quarrel, thrust this war upon Japan. China was not 




MISSISSIPPI BAY, YOKOHAMA. 

united under one absolute power, but viceroys at Pekin, who hovered 
around the imperial figure, had sufficient influence to inaugurate this 
move. One of these, Li Hung Chang, ambitious to develdp the resources 
of his country and thus outstrip Western aggression, favoured this end. 
On the other hand, if China threw the gauntlet at the feet of Japan, the 
latter very readily picked it up. She felt that she had plenty of cause to 
take up the quarrel. She had torn down the barrier concealing the Hermit 
Nation from the world, and had ample reason to look after its interest, as 
that interest was identical with her own. Again, she had more selfish 



JAPAN. 397 

motives. Her politicians and statesmen had increased in number and 
power at such a rate that there was need of some foreign attraction like 
a war to draw the attention of the masses away from the danger at home. 
In the second instance, her population had increased so rapidly that 
foreign colonisation in the near future seemed imperative. And still 
again, as has been hinted, Japan was not unwilling to show to the world 
that she had not lost her warlike qualities during the quarter of a century 
of peace. Knowing her own strength, and confident in it, the time seemed 
auspicious for putting it to proof. 

Underlying this surface talk and feeling lay the unalienable right of a 
people to change its manner of civilisation. That was really what the 
alternative meant, ofered by Japan to China on the 12th of June, 1894. 
If China understood this, she blinded herself to the fact. On the battle- 
field at home Japan had suffered this contest of the Old and the New. 
Now this struggle must be repeated on foreign soil. 

China succeeded in landing about three thousand soldiers at the port of 
A-San, a strongly fortified camp situated on a peninsula formed by two 
rivers, and about forty miles from Seoul, the capital of Corea. Large 
bodies of armed men were marched into Corea from the north by China. 
Japan also was not idle, but sent troops by ship to the coast. The rival 
forces met in a skirmish at A-San, which resulted in the complete rout of 
the Chinese. 

The remnant of this shattered body of soldiery managed by a difficult 
march to join the "flower of the army of China " at Ping- Yang just before 
the middle of September, and in season to mingle in the disastrous battle 
of the 15th, when the pride of the Middle Kingdom was scattered by the 
masterly manoeuvres of Marshal Yamagata and his gallant troops, like 
leaves wind-driven after an autumn frost. Ping- Yang was historic ground, 
it having been the scene of a victory by a Ming and Tartar host over 
Konishi, the Japanese leader, three centuries before. This time history 
repeated itself by reversing the order of victory, and gave the triumph 
to the soldiers of Dai Nippon. 

Many deeds of personal valour are told of this battle, but that which 
won highest place is the heroism of the young trumpeter who was ordered 
to sound the charge at the very moment when a stray shot from the 
enemy gave him his mortal wound. Aware that he had but a few 



398 



THE FAR EAST. 



moments to live, the brave boy did not falter, but performed his last duty. 
Without hesitation or a false note he sounded the summons to battle, and 
continued his patriotic song until death sealed his last note. The news of 
his heroism reaching. his home, his body was received with proud acclaim, 
and the funeral rites were those of a festival, in which his parents out- 



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MUKOJIMA CHERRY BANK, TOKYO. 



vied all others in their rejoicing over the glory of a son they had reared 
for their country. 

Following their disaster at Ping- Yang the Chinese retreated across the 
Yalu River into Manchuria to meet the Tartar hordes coming over the 
mountains. Marshal Yamagata pursued them at his leisure, and thus 
the army of China, of which so much had been expected, melted away like 
snow before the fire of the intrepid Japanese, and Corea knew no more of 
the armed forces of the great Middle Kingdom. 

The victory of the Japanese at Ping- Yang was quickly followed by their 
first glory won on the sea in a battle with a foreign power. This naval 



JAPAN. 399 

battle took place near the mouth of the Yalu, between Admiral Ito and 
Admiral Ting. The force of the first consisted of sixteen vessels, all told, 
while the Chinese had twenty, though of a slightly inferior tonnage to the 
other. This was more than outweighed by the greater speed of the ships 
of Admiral Ting, and the fact that some of the vessels of Admiral Ito had 
been damaged during the sea voyage just completed. 

Confident of victory, Admiral Ting moved boldly against the Japanese, 
with ten ships abreast, two ironclads forming the centre, and four smaller 
armoured cruisers making the wings of this stern array. Behind this 
followed the other ships and torpedo boats. Expecting to carry everything 
before him by storm, the Chinese commander was disconcerted by a 
manoeuvre on the part of his enemy wholly unlooked for. Instead of 
locking horns with him in a direct battle. Admiral Ito sent a portion of 
his fleet forward in what seemed at first a rash clutch at the throat of his 
antagonist. As soon as it had got within range, the foremost of these 
vessels dashed furiously along the front line of the Chinese wall, sending 
broadside after broadside into their solid front. Sweeping around in a 
semicircle as they performed this daring feat, the Chinese had not recov- 
ered from the shock of the surprise before they were dealt another blow 
quite as unexpected and more disastrous. While their attention had been 
fixed in front, other ships of Admiral Ito's squadron had got around so 
as to pour a shower of hot shot and sliell upon the rear of the Chinese 
line. Unprepared for this attack on his rear, before Admiral Ting could 
bring his guns to bear on his audacious enemies, they had made a complete 
circuit of his warships. Admiral Ito now opening fire from his heavy 
ships, which he had held in reserve. Admiral Ting was glad to beat 
a retreat. Owing to the condition of some of his vessels, the Japanese 
commander was obliged to abandon pursuit, so that the Chinese escaped. 
The action had lasted over five hours, and was hotly waged from the 
opening to the finish. Thus within fifty hours, between September 15th 
and 17th, 1894, the Japanese won two victories at the very outset of the 
war which practically settled its results. 

The King of Corea soon after renounced any claim of vassalage to 
China, and Japan had its own way. It was the most propitious day the 
Hermit Nation had ever known. New order has reigned ever since. There 
have been no disturbances within its territory that, with the assistance 



400 



THE FAR EAST. 



of Japan, it has been unable to quickly quiet. Some of tlie uncivilised 
tribes in the South have tried to resist the king, but have been speedily 
brought under control. 

Marshal Yamagata, after penetrating, by laborious marches, into a 
country noted for its long and sanguinary encounters in the past, receiving 
intelligence that the Chinese were to be reinforced in overwhelming 
numbers with troops from the valley of the Amur, called a halt, and 




A VIEW IX MIYAJIMA. 



began to strengthen his position for a great battle with the foe. Some- 
thing of his task in hand may be imagined, when it is known that he had 
over eighty miles of frontier to protect, running from Chiu-lien-cheng to 
the walled pass in the mountains of Hai-chieng. All over the Far East 
the half-wild trooper of the Amur had been pictured as an invincible 
warrior. Springing to the back of his untamed steed, flying hither and 
thither over the broad steppes of his native country, his flight was 
compared to that of the eagle, — swift, certain, and laden with death and 
destruction. This reputation was proved an illusion b}^ the Japanese in 



JAPAN. 401 

a furious fight at Chiu-lien-clieng, when they scattered to the four winds 
of the country the wild marksmen of Manchu. Another victory was won 
at Old Newchang. 

Newchang was a treaty port, and the merchants were immediately 
assured by Marshal Yamagata that they had nothing to fear from his 
invasion. In fact, they gained an assurance of safety which had long 
been taken from them. At this important period in the campaign the 
health of the Japanese commander failed him, so he was obliged to return 
to his home. He was succeeded by Lieutenant-General Nodzu, afterward 
raised to general, who found that the brunt of the battle had been fought 
by his predecessor. Eventually Marshal Yamagata entered the emperor's 
Cabinet as Minister of War. 

Aware of the importance of Port Arthur as a strategical and commercial 
position, Japan next concentrated its naval force to attempt its capture. 
Count Oyama, then Minister of War, was given command of the under- 
taking, and knowing the strength of the place he was about to assail, he 
set about his work with caution and good judgment. China had been 
nearly a quarter of a century in building the fortress here, and it had 
drained her treasury of more than two million dollars. Count Oyama 
was allowed twenty-four thousand men, and he set about transporting 
them to the coast of the mainland with as much rapidity and secrecy as 
was possible. At dawn, on the 21st of November, the attack was opened 
on Port Arthur, and inside of ten hours the Chinese had capitulated. 
Nearly fifty modern cannon were among the prizes, and this victory was 
the most important won in the war. At Port Arthur the Chinese lacked 
only the determination to unite and make a good fight to have held their 
works. They were sufficient in numbers, and it was found that the 
fortifications were in excellent shape. The mines in the harbour were 
all mapped out with a clearness which made it easy for the victors to 
raise the death-dealing instruments without trouble. 

For some reason, which has never been explained. Admiral Ting had 
not come to Port Arthur, but remained inactive at Wei-hai-Wei. This 
officer had been trained under British discipline, and much had been 
expected of him at the outset. Somehow he proved, perhaps through no 
fault of his own, a dismal failure. The Third Army Corps of Japan was 
now despatched to capture him, and after a series of brilliant manoeuvres. 



402 



THE FAR EAST. 



on tlie 31st of January, 1895, the Chinese at Wei-hai-Wei surrendered. 
The two great sea-gates of the enemy were now in the hands of the 
Japanese, and the work of completing their conquest was comparatively 
easy. An expedition to Formosa resulted in the submission of the enemy 
in that quarter, and the flag of Japan now floated over the waters of the 
Asiatic coast. The prowess of Japan was heralded abroad to the nations 
of the earth. Again modern methods had triumphed over ancient. It is 




MIYAJIMA. 



a striking record, too, which shows that from the opening skirmish to the 
closing battle the Japanese were always victorious. She had employed 
340,000 men, and lost less than a thousand. Another thing which should 
be remarked to her credit is the fact that, notwithstanding reports to the 
contrary, she pursued a course in keeping with civilised conditions of war- 
fare. The Chinese prisoners of war who had been maimed were sent 
home when they had got well, with cork legs and artificial arms and 
hands. 



JAPAN. 



403 



Two pretended proffers of peace had already been made by China, and 
rejected x)j Japan. In March Li Hung Chang, the aged viceroy of Pekin, 
was sent to make such terms of peace as he could with the representatives 
of the Emperor of Japan. This conference was held at Shimonoseki, 
where Count Ito Hirobumi and Viscount Mutsu, Prime Minister of For- 
eign Affairs, were empowered to speak and act for the island empire. In 
the midst of this conference an affair occurred which cast a stain on the 




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TEA-HOUSE, TOKYO. 



fame of Japan, and for the time threatened a renewal of the war. This 
was an attempted assassination of the venerable embassador from China. 
Fortunately no more serious personal harm was effected than a bullet- 
wound in the cheek, and the authorities acted with promptness and deci- 
sion. It was speedily shown that the would-be murderer was a person 
of doubtful reputation, and not a representative citizen. The anxiety 
displayed by the emperor and empress did much to allay the ill-feeling 
awakened, so that the peace commission resumed its work. The 8th of 



404 



THE FAR EAST. 



May, 1895, a date memorable in Japanese history/ witnessed the ratifi- 
cation of the treaty of Shimonoseki at Chifu, China. 

This treaty settled upon Japan the cession of Formosa and a cash in- 
demnity for the cost of the war ; determined the independence of Corea. 
and opened the ports of China to the commerce of the world. An adjust- 
ment of the dispute over the Manchurian country was effected, so as to 
avert a war with Russia, — surely no little victory. Of paramount impor- 



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COUNTRY BKIDGK, FUJIKAWA RIVER. 

tance to all this was the prestige it gave Japan among the other nations. 
Her triumph had come like a flash of light from the morning sun spring- 
ing suddenly from a bed of storm-clouds. August 26th a treaty was 
secured with Great Britain, which recognised Japan as her equal. On 
November 22d a new treaty with the United States of America was rati- 
fied, under which the wrongs of the past could not be repeated. 

1 It is a noteworthy fact that Commodore Perry's squadron anchored off Yokohama on this date in 
May, 1854 ; and in 1858 Townsend Harris paved the way to Japan's modern greatness by negotiating 
with the shogun at Yedo for the introduction of Western civilisation through the admittance of 
teachers, physicians, scientists, missionaries, statesmen, and agents of commerce to the country. 



JAPAN. 405 

With the military and commercial importance Japan had earned by her 
victory over China, had come responsibilities which it scarcely seemed 
possible she was capable of bearing. Formosa, her newly acquired terri- 
tory, was peopled by a numerous race of savages, who had no regard for a 
civilising government; who even had no appreciation for the favour shown 
in rescuing them from the oppression of China. The natives, assisted by a 
large number of Chinese, rebelled. Stationing themselves amid the dense 
jungles of the lowlands, within the almost impenetrable forests, or lurking 
behind the strong fortifications of the walled towns, they waged a relentless 
contest against the Japanese for over four months, — a campaign that cost 
Japan more hard fighting than her recent war with China. Over 130,000 
men were engaged in the struggle. Since its close, the condition of the 
inhabitants has materially improved, and the day is not far distant when 
Formosa will cease to be a den of wild savages, and its waters the rendez- 
vous of pirates who have too long been a scourge of that region. In 
obtaining dominion over Formosa, Japan gained only what rightfully 
belonged to her, and what was for the common good of all concerned. 
With its possession the island empire is situated so as to make a stand 
against European or Asiatic aggression. 



CHAPTER XXXIX. 

THE SHRINE OF MAMMON. 

WE have already visited several cities that, from time to time, in 
turn were famous as being Japan's seat of power. But the 
island empire has yet another capital, which is greater in its 
power than any of these others, — than ancient Kyoto, with its religious 
dreaminess ; than modern Tokyo, its military camp, resonant still with the 
measured tread of marching armies and with battle-cries ; than the storied 
memory of Kamakura ; than the queenly glory of Nara, — its commercial 
capital, the capital that to-day rules the destiny of a nation. This is 
Osaka, with a population in the vicinity of half a million, and a history 
that teems with the fortunes of unnumbered millions. It is situated less 
than thirty miles from Kyoto, on the shore of the Inland Sea, and were 
its harbour as good as that of Yokohama, it would have been to-day the 
most populous city in the Far East. As it is, Osaka, variously styled the 
Venice, Glasgow, Chicago, and Manchester, of Japan, has reason to be 
proud of its past and hopeful for its future. 

It was once the military capital, and possesses yet many spots hallowed 
with the memories of Nobunaga, Hideyoshi, and lyeyasu. Much history 
has been made here, and let the fluent tongue of our native guide restore 
the flesh to the framework of the past, and we find ourselves fairly cap- 
tured by the bewildering wraiths of the days of yore. The shoguns con- 
sidered this an important stronghold, and the last act of this military body 
was played here. The castle of the warlike period still stands as a 
marked example of the style of architecture that prevailed in those days. 

Until the close of the fifteenth century it was called Naniiva, derived 
from Nami-haya, a name bestowed upon the site by Jimmu Tenno, when 
he found the sea so rough that he could not embark here on his trip to 
the island 660 years b. c. This name is now applied to it in poetry. A 
place of interest to the visitor is the Tennoji Temple, the temple of 
the heavenly kings, and the Temple of Hong-wan ji is another relic of other 

40G 




LOTUS. 



JAPAN. 



407 



days. But respect for monuments of bygone scenes does not have the 
strong hold here that it has in Kyoto. A ruined fortress of the days of 
feudahsm is the site of the city's water-reservoir, while high above the 
towers of regents, the temples of religious martyrs, pillars of Kwannon, 
the Goddess of Mercy, rises the shrine of Mammon. 

Osaka is in every sense a busy metropolis. Everywhere it bears the 
stamp of this ; in its rapid growth, in its extension of streets and build- 




MISSISSIPPI BAY, NEAR YOKOHAMA. 



ings. Here, as nowhere else in the Orient, we find indication of the 
feverish unrest of the Occident. This reminds us that the former term 
does not strictly apply to Japan since the restoration of 1868. Neither 
should it be used for any period previously with an intention of disparage- 
ment. The writer believes that it in no wise should be associated with 
paganism, as that term is commonly accepted. Japan was not an un- 
civilised nation. Mind, that to the Japanese a Christian was a " bar- 
barian ; " could not this statement be reversed with equal fitness ? 
Certainly there is good reason for saying that her civilisation compares 



408 



THE FAR EAST. 



favourably with many so-called Christian countries. If trained in centuries 
of war, Japan showed herself capa?ble of shaking off the old garment and 
donning the new without resorting to warlike methods. 

What strikes the stranger at first glance is the large number of factory 
chimneys, which proclaim its great manufacturing interests. Hundreds 
of these smoke-begriined tops look down upon him, until he begins to 

think the building 
of factory chimneys 
is the one occu- 
pation of people. 
With these we 
look for the start 
in progressive his- 
tory. Besides be- 
ing the centre of a 
large cotton - spin- 
n i n g industry, it 
has extensive ship- 
building yards, and 
is noted for its big 
iron mills. The 
great silk shops dis- 
play the costliest 
fabrics hand and 
loom can produce. 
As well as being 
filled with the fire 
of modern industry, 
and the lingering 
spirit of ancient glory, Osaka is the gayest city in all Japan. Here are to 
be seen people of ample means and artistic taste. Nowhere is the geisha 
so noted for her beauty, wit, and skill in playing the three-stringed banjo. 
"The daughters of Kyoto do excellent; those of Tokyo do most excel- 
lent; those of Osaka excel them all." No passport is required to visit 
Osaka, nor* that little mountain village, Arima, sixteen miles inland from 
this city, and famous for its bamboo baskets and health-giving springs. 




ROCK HARUNA, HOKOGATAKE. 



JAPAN. 409 

A place of especial interest and importance is the Mint, located in the 
northern part of the city, where all the coin for the empire is minted, and 
where, also, Corea sends her gold for coinage. 

While the situation of Osaka, with reference to Japan, closely resembles 
that of New York to the United States, or Liverpool to England, or Glas- 
gow to Scotland, its harbour is too shallow to admit large steamers, which 
have to lie off the bar at the mouth of the Yodo. For this reason much 
of the foreign commerce that would have come to this city has gone to 
Kobe, twenty-five miles westward. In this modern period the railway 
has largely taken the place of the small ships that used to swarm in its 
waters. Near the centre of the city is the Corean bridge, Coraibashi, from 
which all distances in this vicinity are considered, as the Nihonbashi 
bridge at Tokyo is the starting-point for all routes in the east. 

In the great number of the spindles of Osaka, which are increasing from 
year to year, we see proof and prophecy of the coming importance of the 
manufacture of cotton goods in Japan. Besides Osaka there are fifteen 
other places where cotton-spinning is carried on successfully. China has 
become the best market for the products of these looms, and here the 
island empire has an advantage over other countries. The monetary 
system of both empires is based on silver, and wages are paid in silver at 
the rate of from fifty cents to one dollar a day. Coal is correspondingly 
cheap ; in fact, everything is in favour of this Manchester of the Far East, 
with her thirty-odd cotton-spinning companies, outrivalling her competitors 
of the Far West. 

Another important enterprise of Osaka is the weaving and knitting of 
garments, which are not only sent all over the empire, but find their way 
abroad. Here are made half of the boots and clothing of the empire, 
while glass-making is carried on with profit. No doubt the difficulty with 
China will check the output of goods for a time, as did the war with that 
power in 1894, but Japan will rally from this. Her exports and imports 
are about equal at this time. Of the exports the United States and France 
rank about equal seconds, China receiving the largest amount, and Great 
Britain coming third. The last two send in about the same amounts, 
while the United States sends more. The exports and imports alike are 
not far from sixty million dollars annually. 

We have had occasion to mention the growing industry of silk manti- 



410 THE FAR EAST. 

facture, and this bids fair to become more and more the staple export of 
the country. Nearly every section of Japan, except Hokkaido, is favour- 
able to the growth of the mulberry, and with the further introduction of 
modern machinery the profit in its raising will be materially increased. 
But even now, with the imperfections that some districts offer, the white 
silks of Shinano are unrivalled for their purity and brilliancy. Something 
like three thousand tons of raw silk are reeled every year, with a likeli- 




MOAT AT TOKYO. 



hood that it will soon be doubled in amount. Japan exports raw silk and 
cocoons to the value of nearly twenty million dollars annually. At the 
same time she is sending abroad silk textiles to the value of over five 
millions. Of course it is expected that a large amount of tea is gathered 
year by year, and this assumption is borne out by the figures, which stand 
near seventy million pounds ; of this article of commerce more than one- 
half is sent to the United States. The leading import of Japan is sugar. 
In connection with its commerce, it is interesting to note that not less 
than five hundred Japanese steamships are registered at the ports opened 



JAPAN. 



411 



to trade, while there are a slightly larger number of sailing vessels. 
According to the treaty of 1898, foreign trade and intercourse is now 
unrestricted. 

Japan has already commenced to show its colonising intentions, in the 
manner which it has begun to open up Yeso, or Tokkaido, as has been 
described. The climate of this island is well adapted to raising any crop 
that grows in the temperate zone, which is destined to add vastly to the 




PICKING TEA NP:AR KYOTO. 



storehouses of the empire. With Formosa, Japan has secured not only 
one of the strongest strategical points on the Asiatic coast, but an island 
extremely fertile in its natural state. The cultivation of tea here is 
rapidly increasing, and already the sunny slopes of the Banka district are 
terraced with the valuable shrub. Coffee can be grown here successfully, 
while maize, wheat, and barley can be raised with profit. It is also a 
country capable of raising the sugar-beet, while hemp, jute, and millet are 
already articles of export. Coal-fields have been mined for years by the 



412 THE FAR EAST. 

Chinese, which, under the management of their new owners, are likely to 
show far greater outputs. 

The native inhabitants, probably of Malay origin, are somewhat taller 
and heavier than the Japanese, with broad chests and muscular limbs. 
They have been head-hunters for centuries, but are not savages beyond 
the reach of civilisation. The island has become a good market for cotton 
goods, which the native women of Formosa wear. In the interior roam 
deer, wild goats, bears, boars, panthers, wildcats, and numerous monkeys. 
Along the banks of the streams are seen in great numbers wild ducks, 
geese, snipe, and pheasants. Not a bad country for the sportsman. 

In passing it is interesting to note that Japan not only prohibits the 
use of opium among her own people, but denies the Chinese resident this 
drug. The relation between these two empires that have been neighbours 
so long is not understood by the rest of the world. There is no disputing 
that Japan owes much to China in her literature, and it is equally true 
that the Middle Kingdom is her debtor for much good. Previous to 675 
the Chinese were pleased to call Japan b}^ the designation of Wo, which 
ideograph meant yielding or subdued. This was distasteful to the Japs, 
and the term was dropped. After four centuries of intercourse with China, 
Japan is perfectly familiar with many incidents happening in Central China, 
and she possesses a very vivid account of the Chinese conquest of Manchuria. 

It is, perhaps, needless to say that China is, and has ever been, jealous 
of Dai Nippon. But Japan is the best friend that China has ever known, 
despite the dark reflections which cannot other than rise in the memory 
regarding the wrongs of the past. Better than any other people does she 
understand the ancient empire, and if China ever rises from her despair, it 
must be the strong arm of Japan that lifts her up. By right of ancestral 
endowments the two should be sisters, knowing each other's tongue, 
reading each other's thoughts, and understanding each other's heart as 
no other race does. One motive above all others will tend to unite the 
couple, and for mutual good if not from love, cause them to stand together 
when the final battle shall come for the supremacy of the Far East. Both 
stand in fear of the White Empire, and rather than suffer the encroach- 
ments of Russia too far, will unite in a common resistance. 

If ever Japan had any serious intentions of extending her power over 
the Philippines, which is very doubtful, that opportunity slipped away 



JAPAN. 



413 



with the steaming out of the waters of Yokohama of the war-steamers 
making up the fleet of Commodore George Dewey, on January 3d, 1898. 
But with his defeat of the Spanish at Manila, he brought to the very door 
of Japan that nation to which she owes more than all others her ability to 
become a colonising power. A glance backward over the pages of history 
shows that at the time the Japanese were sending back to Luzon from the 
banks of the Yodo the adventurous pioneers of Spanish colonisation, a 
hardy band of settlers were founding, in the wilderness of the Western 




OLD PINE-TREE IN VILLA GARDEN. 



world, a nation destined eventually to crush Spanish rule in the Far East, 
and awaken Japan from its long sleep. To-day Japan has a navy of over 
fifty men-of-war, three of which are large battle-ships, and over thirty 
torpedo boats. The fleet of Nippon Yusen Kaisha numbers eighty steam- 
ers. Its armed force consists of 260,000 men, and the wealth of the 
empire is estimated to be not less than 10,000,000,000,000 yen. 

Here in Osaka we see more of the cosmopolitan appearance of the 
Occident than elsewhere in Japan, but even here a farmer is readily 
known as a tiller of the soil by his dress ; there is no more mistaking 



414 



THE FAR EAST. 



the calling of the carpenter than that of the coal-burner. This idea of 
individuality is even carried into personal appearance as regards age. The 
old never don the dress of the young, nor is it often that one attempts to 
conceal the evidence of his or her age, as Father Time makes his encroach- 
ments upon the aging victim. Occasionally an attempt is made to retain 
the colour of the hair, but this is done simply from the fear that it might 
be thought one had passed one's years of usefulness, as Isanemoro, nine 




A PICTURESQUE LAKE VIEW, TOKYO. 



hundred years ago, blacked his hair for fear the young men would no 
longer deign to cross swords with him. No man or woman of to-day dyes 
the hair who is not willing to own to every year that time has dropped 
upon his or her shoulders. 

The painful weakness of physique peculiar to the Japanese is shown by 
the large number of students who die before they have completed their 
course of studies. It is the rule that forty per cent, drop out on account 
of death before they graduate, and not over one in twenty takes his 
degree at the University of Tokyo. 



JAPAN. 



415 



Among the dread diseases that exist in Japan is that of leprosy. More 
so, perhaps, than in any other country is it looked upon as a disgrace or 
curse put upon the victim for some misdeed. For this reason, as in other 
countries, it has not been treated as it should have been. In its early stages 
the disease is not given much attention, but, as it advances, the unfortunate 
becomes an object to 
be avoided, and the 
consequence is, when 
he is in sore need of 
care and medical aid, 
he is left to linger by 
himself, alone with 
his terrible destroyer. 
The first person to 
think of looking to 
the welfare of the 
sufferer from this 
malady was the Em- 
press Komiyo Kojo, 
who founded a hos- 
pital for the hapless 
victims. She has 
been described as a 
very beautiful woman, 
but no personal fear 
deterred her from go- 
ing among the af- 
flicted ones, washing 
their sores and caring 

for them. A fire, * 

however, destroyed her hospital, and there was no one to rebuild it for 
centuries, though many realised the great good it had accomplished. 

In 1885 the French missionary, Father Teste vuide, from a small 
beginning, founded another hospital for lepers at the pretty little village 
of Gotemba, overlooked by the sunny heights of Fuji San. The sugges- 
tion for this humane work is said to have been the finding of a poor blind 




PRAYER. 



416 THE FAR EAST. 

woman, unclothed, and destitute of means as well as friends. The kind- 
hearted missionary took her into his own house and cared for her. 
Thinking to get her into better hands, he tried to have her taken to a hos- 
pital, only to be refused on every hand. There was no institution with 
a benevolence equal to caring for the blind beggar dying of an incurable 
disease. Father Teste vuide continued to care for this patient himself, and 
while making her sufferings lighter and showing her the way to a higher 
life, he planned his humane institution. AYith slight encouragement and 
inadequate means at his command, he persevered, and to-day his hospital 
is one of the places that many have reason to bless. It is not claimed that 
a cure can be effected here, but many do leave the hospital after a course 
of treatment, so much improved that they resume an active place in life, 
expecting that some time they may have to return to the secluded home 
of the stricken ones at Gotemba. Here those who are able help till the 
land belonging to the institution, while those who are unable to aid are 
tenderly cared for until the spirit of the sufferer finds flight under the 
teachings of those who point to a higher and better life. It will be 
readily seen that Father Testevuide is looked upon with all the love and 
veneration that was bestowed upon Father Damien of Hawaii. In con- 
nection with this pathetic situation are many stories of sacrifice and un- 
selfish devotion to the cause of suffering humanity. Among those who 
help care for the invalids is a man who voluntarily left a pleasant home 
and a happy family to devote the remainder of his life to the work, the 
only stipulation he asked being that his loved ones should be cared for in 
case they came to want. 

It should be said that leprosy, elephantiasis, is mostly confined to a 
certain district in western Nihon. The lack of proper clothing, the defi- 
ciency of nourishment in the common diet of the people, the crude method 
of caring for the sick, all tend to weaken the race. Since the introduc- 
tion of the jinrikisha, heart disease has appeared among the coolies to an 
alarming extent. Previously these people were among the most hardy. 
It will be seen that the physical condition of the race is not the most 
hopeful. How the change of the mode of living to the manner of the 
Western world is going to affect the situation it is still too early to tell. 
That it must result in good finally seems almost certain. 




VILLAGE SCK^'E. 



CHAPTER XL. 



THE POWER BEHIND THE THRONE. 



IF the revolution of 1868 restored the rule of Japan to the imperial 
line, and dealt the death-blow to the shogunate, it immediately began 
to build a new power behind the throne. This modern shogun does 
not come armed with a two-edged sword, but wields the tongue and pen 
quite as effectively for his purpose, and he has it to his credit that he sheds 
red ink in the place of blood. This august person is the politician. But 
before we consider the power and perils he offers, it will be necessary to 
speak of that modern regent, the financier. In fact, we cannot well sum 
up the result of a country's achievements, or measure its possibilities for 
the future, without knowing its financial situation. This may be briefly 
summed up and a fair view of the condition of Japan be obtained. 

The monetary system of the empire, as has been observed, is based 
upon silver, which has already depreciated to a considerable extent, and is 
likely to go lower. The yen, which at par value corresponds to our 
dollar, is divided into one hundred sen, and this last into ten rin. It will 

417 



418 THE FAR EAST. 

be seen that it takes one thousand rins to make one yen, or a dollar of 
our money, and when it is taken into consideration that this small coin 
plays an important part in the values of articles produced, the slowness 
with which people using so small a unit of exchange get rich, according to 
our ideas, will be quickly understood. This rin, for convenience in hand- 
ling, has a hole in the middle, so it can be placed on a string with others. 
Gold and copper, as well as silver, are used in the coinage. The satsu, 
or bank-note, as being more convenient than coin, is largely in circulation, 
and of different denominations. It is a singular fact that the only foreign 
coin which is current in Japan is the Mexican dollar, which passes here at 
its face value. 

Though Japan had no mine which was worked at that time, coins have 
been in circulation, to a limited extent, since an early age. Tradition 
gravely asserts that among the spoils brought back from an expedition to 
Corea by the followers of Empress Jingo were silver coins which were 
shaped like birds. Having less apparent use for coin than for idols, the 
gold and silver taken from Corea and China from time to time, and from 
the expeditions to the Philippines, were utilised in making new gods, or in 
affording ornaments for persons, and the decorations for religious objects. 
It will thus be seen that these rare metals were esteemed chiefly for their 
beauty, and that their value as a medium of exchange was thought of 
least and last. The fine embroidery of the best costumes was made richer 
by showers of gold and silver, the weapons of war were embellished and 
the armour was brightened by inlays of the same precious metals. 

Coinage was not attempted with any marked success until the beginning 
of the eighth century, and then copper was used almost entirely. Pre- 
viously the people had been accustomed to resort entirely to barter and 
exchange of materials, so that the government met with long and persist- 
ent opposition to the new medium. It became necessary to overcome the 
prejudice of the people by offering prizes to those who would accumulate 
the most copper coins. One imperial edict called forth is notable for 
offering official rank to the farmer who could show possession of six 
thousand cash; another commanded travellers to be supplied with coins 
rather than goods with which to defray their expenses ; a third provided 
that taxes should be paid in coin instead of produce ; still another made 
the land transferred in payment of barter rather than money liable to 



Tea Pickers 



JAPAN. 



419 



confiscation. In the light of such intelligence it is not surprising to 
find the government, at the end of a century, enacting regulations in the 
opposite direction, — the hoarding of coins prohibited as far as possible, and 
the farmer reminded that in case of the failure of the crops copper coins 
could not be cooked and eaten. Any person who concealed his coins was 
liable to have the whole lot seized and confiscated by the government, 
one-fifth of the amount being allowed the informer. 

Japan had already — at the beginning of the eighth century — formed a 




A TRAVELLERS RESTING - HOUSE. 



ministry of finance, which was supposed to regulate, not only the amount 
of coin in circulation, but the values between exchanges, and to establish 
weights and measures. The ability of this ministry was taxed to its 
utmost to do all this consistently and satisfactorily. In reality, the peo- 
ple — the common masses — had little need of money as a medium of 
exchange. The leading requirement for the metals was that of answering 
the demands of the religious leaders for new idols and newer and greater 
offerings to the gods, especially in the frequent cases of war. 

The gold and silver used for purposes of exchange were not cast into any 
particular form, but were cut from bars into pieces of the desired size. 



4^0 



THE FAR EAST. 



During the long interval of the five hundred years' war, or from the 
eleventh to the sixteenth century, the coinage of metals was so checked 
that it became the custom to send the bars of gold and silver to China, 
obtaining in exchange tokens of copper, which was the most called for. 
During the Nara era, and also that of the Heian, so many new temples 
were raised, and so many idols made, that the supply of copper became 
insufficient to meet the demand. In this emergency the ministry hit 
upon the scheme of debasement of the coinage, and the unit of copper 




CASTLE OF OSAKA. 



went down one-half. Another resort was to place a value on a coin in 
excess of its denomination. In this way great confusion and vexation was 
encountered. Some refused to accept this depreciated currency. Then, 
too, the mints were in such a crude state that many of the coins were 
poorly made. These were often objected to, or accepted at reduced value. 
This practice, however, was stopped by Emperor Saga, 820, by inaugurat- 
ing a system of flogging all who refused to allow face value for coins 
offered, no matter in what condition. This stand was taken on the ground 
that the person who offered one of these coins was not responsible for any 
defect of mintage or absence of value. 



JAPAN. 421 

Government having set its own seal upon dishonesty, it is not to be 
wondered at that the people eventually followed the trend of an example 
of this kind. The coins of China, at this period finding their way into 
Japan, were known to be of greater commercial value, and thus the 
inhabitants of Dai Nippon came to accept them at four times the consider- 
ation of the products of the home mint. This incensed the government 
so far that they attempted to stop the practice. Edicts were put out con- 
demning those who dared to discriminate against the government, order- 
ing them to be branded upon the cheek with hot irons, placed under heavy 
fines, or exposed to the scoffs of passers-by in some public place for three 
days. Still the classes aimed at — the farmer and the merchant — defied 
the officials and resolutely held to their determination, many of them to 
their sorrow and disgrace in the eyes of the nobility, until, after centuries 
of oppression of this kind, during the dynasty of the Tokugawa shoguns 
the people conquered. The coins of China were received at four times 
the valuation of those of Japan. Little wonder if, under such a teacher, 
the commercial sensibilities of the Japanese trader became blunted to the 
sense of actual honesty in his dealings. His government had set its seal 
on dishonesty and tried to make him follow its course. 

In fixing the standard of value, rice has always been used as the unit of 
value. We have mentioned that taxes were commonly paid in this cereal 
and from time immemorial to the present day, rice has been more to the 
Orient than bread to the Occident. It was both bread and meat to the 
Japanese wherever and whenever he could get it. The official measure 
of Japan. is the koku, which equals 5.113 bushels, and is divided into to- 
shoj and go. A go was relatively one-thousandth of a koku, and thus the 
usual price of a go being one cash or 7no7i, that of a koku was one thou- 
sand cash. This was what might be considered the common price, 
though sometimes rice sold for double the value indicated. This cal- 
culation was not definitely disturbed until recently. It will be seen that 
the purchasing power of coin, based on this estimation, which was official 
was very great. Accepting the usual estimate of five go of rice, equal 
to a pint and a half of our measure, as the allowance for the day's food 
of a labourer, we find him living at the nominal expense of five cash, 
or five mills in our money. 

When the fiefs were taken from the nobles and restored to the imperial 



422 



THE FAR EAST. 



line by the revolution of 1868, the feudal lords and samurai were recom^ 
pensed for their losses either by sums set in commutation or by public 
bonds bearing interest as an annual income. In doing this, Japan estab- 
ished a national debt of 191,500,000 yen, the amount settled upon the 
nobles by bonds. To this we have to add 21,500,000 yen, resulting from 
the acceptance of the indebtedness of the fiefs, — a balance of 10,000,000 
yen having been paid in ready money; a loan of some 15,000,000 




CONICAL HILLOCK SHAPED TO REPRESENT FUJI SAN. 

yen incurred by the Satsuma rebellion of 1877, two foreign loans of 
16,500,000 yen, a loan for public improvements of 33,000,000 yen, and 
yet one more for naval construction of 13,000,000, and another of 
14,500,000 yen arising from the establishment of a fiat currency, and 
we have the whole amount of Japan's financial liabilities during the 
first twenty years of the existence of the new government, which 
equalled 305,000,000 yen. 

The expense arising in connection with the war with China amounted 
to a little more than 240,000,000 yen, of which 105,000,000 was paid 



JAPAN. 



423 



out of the accumulated money in the treasury, and 135,000,000 added 
to the national debt. Japan received from China as indemnity for 
the war, 300,000,000 yen, and by increasing her naval and army 
forces, improving her coast defences and dockyards, etc., incurred an 
expense of 325,- 
000,000 yen; to 
this she added 
120,000,000 yen 
for railways, 
telegraphs, and 
telephones ; 20,- 
000,000 yen for 
dredging and 
widening her 
rivers ; 20,000,- 
000 yen for 
industrial and 
agricultural 
banks and other 
improvements. 
These sums for 
improvements 
were met by 
domestic loans, 
which it was con- 
sidered possible 
to meet inside of 
ten years. As a 
result, we find, 

at the beginning of 1900, Japan's indebtedness to be a trifle less than 
500,000,000 yen, or dollars in our money. 

If this sum seems large at first sight, it becomes more appalling when we 
come to examine the assets and income with which it must be met. We 
find that with her political and industrial progression, Japan has gone back- 
ward in her liabilities. The question does not arise, can she keep her head 
above water, but, how long can she do it. Let us look into her prospects. 



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AN ARCHER. 



424 THE FAR EAST. 

Upon the decline of feudalism and the establishment of the new govern- 
ment in 1871, the emperor lifted the tenant farmer up from the condition 
of a dependent, to the ownership of 11,000,000 acres of land, on the stip- 
ulation that he pay a land tax of three and a half yen, equalling in the 
depreciated currency $1.75 per acre. This is about one-seventh what he 
had to pay under the old system. The direct tax received by the govern- 
ment amounts annually to 93,000,000 yen, to which should be added the 
income from posts, state railway, telegraphs, etc., reaching the sum at 
present of 34,500,000 yen. This then, gives the government 128,000,000 
yen with which to support an army of toward half a million soldiers and 
a navy of over seventy ships, and to carry a debt of 500,000,000 yen. In 
answering the question asked, it should be considered that no Western 
nation can support its armies and carry on its improvements so cheaply. 
In the second place, the income from the enterprises owned and controlled 
by the government is steadily increasing ; in the third instance, as has 
been hinted, the people are very well able to bear a heavier burden of 
taxation. Japan has no reason to feel anxious about its future in this 
respect. 

Japan has greater reason for fear in another direction. The men who 
carried forward the restoration and sustained the Meeji era, as the first 
quarter of a century following the reinstating of the imperial line has 
been called, were the ablest that had come to the front for a long period. 
These included those clans most dreaded in the past, Satsuma and Choshiu. 
Unfortunately the highest offices in the state are hereditary. Those in 
power were soon opposed by a party that demanded greater liberty in the 
government. This party became known as the Liberals. It started in 
1878, under the leadership of Count Itagaki. Seven years later, this body 
of men being content to ask and wait, a second party arose on the same 
grounds as the other, except that it sought for immediate change. It had 
been organised by a former member of the imperial Cabinet, Count Okuma, 
who was opposed to Count Itagaka, and thus the leaders of the two 
parties, standing practically on the same platform, became bitter enemies. 
The name of the new party was Progressists. These two great political 
bodies are, as far as general principles are concerned, identical, but in 
Japan it is not principles which count in its politics, but persons. The 
leaders of the imperial party held the reins of government for nearly a 



JAPAN. 



425 



quarter of a century, when they began to give way to others, and the 
decline of the party began. Men prominent in the twq political bodies 
mentioned came to the front, but Count Itagaka, who has been styled 
" the Rousseau of Japan," and Count Okuma, " the Robert Peel," towered 
head and shoulders above all others. The demand for a Constitution, 




A TEMPLE ENTRANCE. 



accompanied by the threat of breaking down the old walls, had to be met 
by the Constitution of 1890, and the Diet a year later. 

With the Constitution written by Marquis Ito, the emperor volunteered 
certain concessions and granted privileges which in no other country 
have been gained without war and bloodshed. It fixed the minimum 
age of parliamentary candidates and holders of franchise at twenty- 
five, and made the qualification for each, an annual payment of fifteen 
yen in taxes. By this qualification only 460,000, out of a population 
of 16,000,000 male persons of the required age, were allowed to vote or 
hold office. A House of Representatives was provided for, consisting of 



426 



THE FAR EAST. 



three hundred members, and a House of Peers, elected by the people, but 
nominated by the sovereign from the hereditary lines. Thus, with only 
the preliminary preparation of meeting by provincial assemblies, Japan 
assumed the responsibilities of parliamentary institutions. By this action 
the progress of the empire seemed to be placed in imminent danger. 
It was no slight matter to take the power from the hands of old and tried 
statesmen, and place it in the control of new and untried men, who must 
of necessity be ignorant of the underlying principles of a good govern- 




DRESSING FISH. 



ment. In this peculiar situation the peril was largely removed by the 
fact that the emperor still held the power to control the Cabinet, which 
was dependent upon him for its life. This was intended by the astute 
framer of the Constitution, that the lawmakers should be compelled to 
come to the imperial master as their source of power. 

When the Constitution was given, according to understanding, the rival 
elements in politics had the privilege to contest for the removal of those 
high in power who yet represented feudalism in a modernised form. But 
it was only by speech they moved ; they dared not raise a hand against 



JAPAN. 427 

the emperor. The people would not submit to it, — not yet, — and they 
knew it. In this peculiar embarrassment they stood between the throne 
and the people. It was in vain that the very men who had thrown down 
the old yoke of tyranny, and given Japan its new regime of power, made 
their appeals. These men were now looked upon by those who had 
profited by them, through their courage and wisdom, as usurpers and 
revolutionary politicians. But these were still wise and sanguine enough 
to wait, declaring that their triumph was only a matter of time. It is 
proving so. Not far distant is the day when Cabinets that shall repre- 
sent the people, and an administration which shall administrate the will 
of the commonwealth, will be assured. Her statesmen can afford to wait. 
They have already won a good measure of glory. 



CHAPTER XLI. 

THE COURSE OF EMPIRE. 

IN Kyoto there is a temple known as the Kyomizu, which has a 
traditional origin. According to ancient accounts, the Goddess 
Kwannon, in the guise of an old man, appeared to an humble fisher- 
man and commanded him to build a dera (temple), and place therein an 
image of herself as the Goddess of Mercy. This she ordered him to carve 
from a log lying at his feet. In obedience to this command, though a 
novice at such work, this old man, whose name was Erichin, set himself 
at once about the task. He laboured steadily for a score of years without 
being discovered at his work. Then, just as be was nearing its comple- 
tion, a noted warrior discovered him. He was so filled with admiration 
for the gray-headed novice's zeal and skill, that, upon hearing his story, 
he gave him his own house to be taken to this beautiful spot beside a 
cascade and raised above his graven goddess. In this way was built this 
temple and deity, which have remained many centuries as a reminder 
of the faith and industry of a faithful follower of Buddha. The sacred 
place is reached by a road bearing its name, and the visitor beholds an 
odd, antique structure lifted high into the air upon piles. Once inside its 
walls, the rare paintings of old Japanese masters are to be seen. The 
image which cost so many years of patient toil is but a little over five 
feet in height, and is kept in a shrine, which is opened only three times 
during a century. But the temple is lighted by a lamp that is never 
allowed to burn out. 

Between this ancient place of divine worship and Dai Nippon many 
suggestive comparisons have been made. The many isles upon which the 
empire has been built are not unlike so many piers rising from the bed of 
the ocean. Like the origin of the temple, its birth is veiled in mystery 
and obscurity, an old man and a young woman figuring prominently in 
both. The sacred retreat is one of great beauty, amid waterfalls, flowers, 
and birds. Japan is embosomed in these. Here the Goddess of Mercy 
chose her abiding-place, and nowhere has this spirit ruled with a more 

428 



JAPAN. 



429 



apparent presence than in the Sunrise Land. The figure of the graven 
image exactly represents the stature of an average Japanese. But the 
comparison that delights most is drawn from the fact that the light 
of the temple has never expired. As through the changes of masters, 
in all the vicissitudes of religious life, the divine lamp has kept bright, so 



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has the spark of liberty never dimmed in the hearts of the people, let 
whatever rule come to the surface that might. 

Three Japans are pictured to the tourist, who does not stop to look 
below the surface, — the empire of pleasure, the empire of beauty, and 
the empire of mystery. The historian finds three in his catalogue, — the 
empire of tradition, the empire of feudalism, and the empire of progres- 
sion. Again, the student finds another three, — the real, the unreal, and 
the ideal Japans. For the benefit of the general reader, that he may the 
easier carry the more important events in his mind, we divide, or separate, 
the history of Japan into eight sections or parts, viz.. Days of the Gods, 



430 THE FAR EAST. 

ending with the seventh century b. c. ; the Viking Age, from the begin- 
ning of the sixth century B. c. to the Christian era ; TwiHght of Tradition, 
from the year 1 to the close of the seventh century ; the reign of Fuji- 
wara, from 64,5 to the close of the ninth century ; the era of the Five 
Hundred Years' War, 888 to 1336 ; the Dark Age, from 1336 to 1573 ; 
Middle Age, 1574 to 1615; Golden Era, between 1616 and 1868; Meeji, 
or Great Peace, the quarter of a century between the Golden Era and 
the war with China in 1894 ; the Progressive Period, the present time. 

It is both interesting and instructive to compare the dates of the setting 
of the mile-stones of Japan's historic journey along the pathway of time 
with the checkered condition of other countries of the world during the 
different stages of life. While the descendants, of Jimmu Tenno were 
founding with the sword Yamato Damashii, the Soul of Old Japan, under 
the inspiration of tlie heroism which made the island empire the home of 
a race of warriors, that first great student of nature, Aristotle, the Greek 
philosopher, was awakening the followers of Philip of Macedon with his 
wisdom of speech and writing. Alexandria, the birthplace of science and 
literature, was built. During that era the first great school of the world 
was established, where the renowned scholars and wise men of Egypt 
gathered, and where thousands of young men came to learn the wondrous 
truth which they taught. If the children of Dai Nippon claimed to be 
the offspring of the sun, here it was first taught that the sun was the 
centre of the universe around which the earth and the other planets 
revolved. If these sages taught more than they could prove, it showed 
them none the less acute of discernment. 

According to the traditions of that age, at the time Jimmu Tenno was 
founding his Empire of the Rising Sun, Romulus was building on the 
banks of the Tiber that Empire of the West which was destined to dazzle 
the world with its power and splendour. Rome was mightiest while 
Dai Nippon played in childlike simplicity on the banks of the Yodo, the 
Tiber of the Far East. The sun of Roman glory was beginning to dip 
toward the west as Empress Jingu set out on her conquest of Corea, and 
as the king of light set on Rome it rose on Japan. 

The barbarians of the North, laying in ruins the civilisation that had 
been the upbuilding of six centuries, plundered Rome in 410, and Europe 
entered upon the Dark Ages, which lasted for nearly eight hundred years. 



JAPAN. 



431 



During this long period Japan sounded the praises of Fujiwara, saw this 
proud line of imperialism rise and fall, fought the brunt of her five 
hundred years' battles, and folded about her the black mantle of her own 
age of darkness. Singularly enough, while all of Europe was in the midst 
of wars and wild disorder, the sun of civilisation seeming to be lost for 
ever behind the impenetrable clouds of stubborn warfare, and the flash of 
the two-edged sword the only light that came from the East, the wild 








GROUNDS SURROUNDING A SHINTO SHRINE. 



tribes of the deserts of the great central region of the Eastern continent, 
brought together and unified by the inspiring and far-reaching teachings 
of one man, Mahomet, became the leaders of enlightenment. The great 
schools of Tunis, Bagdad, Cordova, and Seville, founded by the Arabs 
of Asia and the Moors of Africa, were the fountains of art, science, 
literature, and religion. With them was vested the riches, power, and 
wisdom of the world, until the Crusades awoke Europe from her long, 
troubled sleep. 

Europe might be said to have been in her Middle Age at nearly the same 



432 



THE FAR EAST. 



time Japan was entering hers, while the Golden Era of Dai Nippon closely 
followed the Renaissance of Europe, which was the rekindling of the torch 
of ancient enlightenment, which has reached unwonted brightness in this 
age of science and literature. 

An examination of the relative positions of the seats of power during 
the shifting drama of the rise of the Japanese empire shows that the 
leaders in the ancient days were natives of the district of Yamato, or in 
Kinai, which belonged to the five home provinces, of which Kyoto was the 




A JUNK. 



centre. In the Middle Ages the able men came from Kuanto, the district 
of which Yedo was the capital. With the opening of more modern history 
the foremost men came from Mino, Owair, and Mikawa, of the Tokaido, or 
Eastern Sea route. In the period of the restoration the leaders rose 
from Kyushu and, farther south and west, from Choshiu, Satsuma, Tosa, 
and Hizen. 

One reason for the imity of the Japanese in their undertakings is the 
close relation of the people. For them there is but one language, one 
history, one system of tradition, one ideal, and one race. There may have 
been different branches at the outset of this family tree, but so long and 



JAPAN. 



433 



so closely have these been interwoven that they now compose a single 
body. 

It seemed to be a part of the great plan of national redemption that 
Japan should emerge from out of the mists and mysticisms of the past 
into the light of the present at a time when those guiding forces, educa- 
tion, science, and Christianity, were most potent to surround her with the 
richest gifts of the Occidental world. The whistle of the American 
steamer in the harbour of Yokohama awoke the island empire from her 




LANTERN AND WATER BASIN. 



long sleep. It must not be understood that she would have slept on in 
her peaceful dreams had not our blu:ff Commodore Perry come upon the 
scene at that time, but the awakening would have been delayed many 
years, perhaps for a generation. Nor should it be considered that the 
revolution which speedily followed was the result of a sudden impulse. 
No great revolution, civic or military, is the product of a single day, but 
rather the culminating growth of years of fostering. Our own war for 
independence had been slumbering for a long time in the breasts of the 
patriots of '76, and burst forth only when the crust of the volcano had 



434 THE FAR EAST. 

become too thin to hold the fire longer. As far back as the ascendency of 
the Fujiwara had begun, Japan laid the foundation for that platform upon 
which she was to rise so many years later into the proud consciousness of 
a full-fledged power. 

It must indeed have been a vivid picture disclosed to this people when, 
on July 8, 1853, the inhabitants of Uraga discovered four armed cruisers 
lying off her port, and in answer to her signal rockets the anchors were 
dropped amid the rattling of chains and the voices of a strange people. 
The day and the scene have been so aptly described by one of Japan's 
historians that we cannot do better than to quote it here : "• The day was 
ushered in with fog so thick that the land was hidden. Only at intervals 
could the rocky outlines of the coast be discerned. Gradually through the 
sun-rent curtains of mist the mountains became visible. At meridian Fuji's 
glorious form loomed into view^ and by mid-afternoon the whole panorama 
of the landscape and blue waters greeted the eye. At sunset the peerless 
mountain wore a crown of glory. From midnight until four o'clock A. m. 
appeared from the southwest a meteoric sphere of light that moved 
toward the northeast, illuminating the whole atmosphere, finally falling 
toward the sea and vanishing. The next day was one of sunny splendour. 

" So it has been with Japan, social and political. Foreigners in the 
morning of their life on the soil found themselves in a fog of ignorance. 
Everything Japanese seemed veiled in mystery. . . . Japan was then the 
Land of Darkness. Gradually the dawn broke, the fog« of mystery were 
risen, and the real Japan was discovered. Yet before the cloudless day 
was ushered in, the great meteoric movement from the southwest toward 
the northeast — the uprising of the great clans which made New Japan 
and seated the emperor in Tokyo — took place. Like the coming of the 
Sun Goddess out of her cave was the emergence of the mikado into the 
white light of public duty. The mystery play was over. To-day Japan 
is worthy of her name, — Sunrise. It is the 9th of July." ^ 

To the Portuguese belong the credit of first visiting Japan, and opening 
intercourse with them. They sent her the Jesuits to change her religion, 
and took from her some of her subjects to be made slaves in foreign lands. 
Neither action pleased Japan, and she forbade these people coming to her 
shores. The loss was Portugal's, the gain Japan's. Spain tried her hand 

1 Griffis. 




entrancp: to uyeno park, tokio. 



JAPAN. 



435 



at converting and colonising, at slave-trading and money-getting. She 
found the inhabitants of the island empire too alert and too summary in 
her dealing to keep her foothold on the islands. The Dutch came, with 
more caution and a deeper purpose. By appearing to let alone that matter 
dearest to the heart of the Japanese they were allowed to have a monopoly 
of the trade, — we have seen with what profit to Holland ; and in return 
they gave Japan more than they have ever been given credit for. In 




A COMMOX TYPE OF CIIY I KA - (i A H DKX. 



return for the privilege they enjoyed they opened the door to the light of 
European science, medicine, and literature. The books and language 
given this hermit race by the Dutch were a wonderful revelation to them. 
The inspiration they afforded was the leaven at work upon the loaf of 
political progress. The gold that the merchantmen of Holland carried 
away year by year, century by century, was not all lost. The Dutch 
removed the bane and softened the deep-seated hatred the Japanese felt 
toward Christianity. 



436 



THE FAR EAST. 



England, first through her Will Adams, whose grave is to-day an hon- 
oured spot on the bluff overlooking Yokohama bay, shed new light on 
the benighted hearts of the men of feudalism. Since, English scholars 
have penetrated deeper into the mysteries of the military court at Yedo, 
and, pulling aside the curtain of pomp and pageantry, have warned the 
true representative of power at Kyoto of the folly of his situation. Sir 
Harry Parkes, an English minister, first of all defied the shogun in de- 




IN AN IRIS GARDEN. 



manding that his credentials go to the actual sovereign, and thus forged 
another link in the chain of modern progress. 

The Russians tried their hand at developing the country, and finding 
an opportunity to seize a huge slice, did so ; and like hungry bears, have 
kept growling and harrjdng their shore ever since. 

With all these and others to add their mite, to say nothing of China, 
who gave of her blood and sinew and divine love, it was left for America 
to complete the work of revelation and restoration. Commodore Perry, 
by his shrewd determination, rent the veil hanging over the empire, which 
Townsend Harris, five years later, completely tore aside by that treaty 
which opened the ports of Japan to the commerce of the world. That 



JAPAN. 



437 



the United States has not lost by this is shown by the fact that from 
the fourth position among the nations in trade with the island empire 
she has risen to the first. It can be truly said that since the eventful 
day when Commodore Perry reached Yedo Bay, no other nation has treated 
Japan with greater fairness or has helped the empire farther along the 
broad maritime way of universal progress than ours. Japan knows this, 
and appreciates it. With American government over the Philippines, 




WEAVING HABUTAI SILK. 



the great Republic of the West and the little Empire of the Far East 
are brought closely together. 

The Japanese government has learned more of diplomacy from Amer- 
ica than all she had acquired from other nations. The Washington 
policy has ever been peace, the advancement of industry, the progress 
of education, and the enlightenment of Christianity. The Americans 
have shown a patience found with none other. The treaty w^hich placed 
Japan among the commercial nations was obtained only after a year 



438 THE FAR EAST. 

and a half of patient waiting and gentle expostulating, without a war- 
ship or a gun. But we need not multiply these examples. 

The history of conquest is a remarkable record, each chapter more 
wonderful than the one before. Setting its conquering columns west- 
ward from the highlands of northern India, within three thousand 
ygars it has performed its stupendous achievement, leaving as monu- 
ments of its conquest the empires of Persia, Greece, Eome, and Great 
Britain. Recruiting its ranks from the yeomanry of the last, it crossed 
the stormy Atlantic to found on the shores of the New World the great 
Republic of America. Still seeking new scenes of emprise it swept the 
breadth of a continent. Again confronted by an ocean, it unhesitatingly 
dared the dangers of the Pacific to awaken from their sleep of centuries 
a people eminently fitted to rear the sixth empire in this triumphant 
march of the ages. This power, toward which the gaze of the rest of 
the world is turned, is Japan. Another step, less gigantic than those 
already taken, and the circuit of the globe will have been completed. 
The new scene of action will be China, and as in the past, the preceding 
empire will be the one to raise it to the height of modern greatness. 
When this shall have been done, as it will be in the near future, most 
fully then will have been proved the truth of the saying, "Westward 
the course of empire takes its way." That Japan is equal to the task 
before her is certain. Another fact should be borne in mind in summing 
up the situation : Oriental and Occidental civilisations are based on dif- 
ferent foundations. It is better so; it will be better for both if they 
remain distinctive for many generations to come. 



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